First Year of DaSL

Welcome to the Fred Hutch Data Science Lab! The mission of the FH DaSL (pronounced “FH Dazzle”) is:

To coordinate data science activities, build community, make data easier to use, and create value for Hutch scientists with data resources, partnerships, philanthropy and infrastructure.

The FH DaSL is led by the Fred Hutch Chief Data Officer, Jeff Leek. Jeff comes to the Hutch from Johns Hopkins where he spent the last 8 years leading the Johns Hopkins Data Science Lab.

The FH DaSL has some big goals:

• To make data easier to use around the Hutch,
• To help foster community,
• To support trainees, staff, and faculty in becoming better and more effective data stewards,
• To build and release training, tools, and support in order to scale our impact.

But we are just getting started! In the first year of the DaSL we have three big missions:

• Learn about the diverse data needs of the Hutch and create a concrete proposal for future DaSL support that aims to fill gaps, address needs and create additional, scalable support systems where they’re needed.
• Foster the community of data scientists around the Hutch in ways that respect our geographic, data and personal diversity, being mindful of the impacts on how we work due to the pandemic.
• Supporting the evolution of processes, technologies and prioritization of the now merged Fred Hutch data portfolio from an institutional perspective, in partnership with researchers and groups such as IT and administrative entities.

Our goal is to make sure that as a new part of the Fred Hutch Community, everyone who touches data has a clear stake in our work, since data impacts much of what we do! Our most important, overarching mission is that we need to do our work in partnership with the research community at Fred Hutch, as well as staff involved in the systems and infrastructure that surrounds research data use.

Communication is a two way street, so we hope to use our news page to both openly communicate with the Fred Hutch community and the wider public. Conversely, we welcome the Fred Hutch community to contact us by emailing data@fredhutch.org at any time if you have ideas, comments, questions or want to partner with us in some way. We look forward to connecting with you all and to what is next for the Fred Hutch.