Data Bootcamp for Educators

In these four-and-a-half day bootcamps, educators will receive hands-on training on spreadsheet skills, the same skills taught at IRE’s popular Data Journalism Bootcamps, with a focus on learning how to teach these tools in a college setting.

Topics include building data lessons into existing coursework, creating syllabi for data journalism courses, and building hands-on teaching skills. Attendees will receive IRE’s training materials and data, which can be used in their classes.

The bootcamps will be taught by IRE’s experienced trainers and college-level data journalism professors. The bootcamps are open to anyone teaching journalism at a college or university, regardless of academic title.

• July 10-14, 2023 - Columbia, MO (University of Missouri Campus)
• July 24-28, 2023 - Virtual

• A Google account: We use Google Classroom for both the in-person and virtual bootcamps to provide you with materials before and during bootcamp. You'll continue to have access to your classroom once the training is over, too. Your Google account should be a traditional Gmail account -- not a Google-administered account through your university. We can help you make sure you have the correct Gmail access.
• Internet access (virtual only): Strong internet is important, since you'll be in Zoom most of the day.
• Zoom (virtual only): Our virtual meeting space.

We recommend, but do not require:

• Two screens or monitors (virtual only): Past students have found a two-screen setup useful for following instruction while they practice hands-on skills. If you don't have two monitors, don't worry! We'll go slow and help you with anything you miss.

$800 for current IRE members.

Non-members should join ($70/year for academics) before buying a ticket.

Scholarships available for educators of color include the following:

• IRE membership/renewal ($70 value)
• Complimentary boot camp registration ($800 value)
• $500 travel stipend for in-person bootcamp

If you need to cancel your bootcamp registration, there will be a $200 non-refundable fee until one week prior to the bootcamp. Please email logistics@ire.org to request a cancellation. 

"One of the best things about bootcamp was the cohort. They represented community colleges, public universities, private schools, HBCUs and HSIs. Some were Pulitzer Prize winners, some had lots of data experience, and some were brand new to it. Everyone shared tips, lesson plans and assignment ideas. So much of what we did in the bootcamp I can immediately replicate in my classroom. It demystified data for me, and showed me how to get my students excited about data journalism."

"It was really useful to learn this in a context for educators, rather than simply trying to pick up the skills themselves. I learned a lot of tips and ideas about how to *teach* these skills that were more useful than the skills themselves."

"This was fantastic and I would repeat the training over and over again. I highly recommend for any educator who wants to bring data journalism into the classroom."