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Women in Data Science

Pomona College, Claremont, CA, USA

April 1, 2022

WiDS Claremont is an independent event organized by Manisha Goel, Jo Hardin, and Michelle Zemel to coincide with the annual Global Women in Data Science (WiDS) Conference held at Stanford University and an estimated 150+ locations worldwide. All genders are invited to attend WiDS regional events, which features outstanding women doing outstanding work.

Note: the venue is Hahn Building, Pomona College (on Harvard Ave between 4th and Harrison).



Due to COVID restrictions, registration is required and open only to members of the 5C (Claremont Colleges) community.

Please register here.

WiDS Claremont Speakers

These awesome women in Data Science will be speaking at the Claremont WiDS event.
Mitra Akhtari

Mitra Akhtari

Data Scientist

Mitra Akhtari

graduated from Harvard with an Economics PhD in May 2017. She is currently a data scientist at Airbnb. As an economist by training, her main area of expertise is applied micro-economics and causal inference. She combines quasi-experimental methods and observational data to estimate underlying causal relationships. In addition, she loves using data to tell stories: sometimes the most compelling points are made by simple and creative descriptive statistics and not fancy models. One example is a fantastic data project which was used in several federal court cases in 2017, The Immigrant Doctors Project.

Hilary Parker

Hilary Parker

Data Scientist

Hilary Parker

is a Data Scientist, previously of Stitch Fix, Etsy, and the 2020 Biden for President Campaign. She is passionate about the intersection of data science and product, from deeply understanding users to designing new experiences that depend on innovative data pipelines and client interactions. She also has a data science podcast — Not So Standard Deviations — co-hosted with Roger Peng since 2015.

Melanie Walsh

Melanie Walsh

Assistant Professor

Melanie Walsh

is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the iSchool at the University of Washington, where she teaches data science, data ethics, and digital humanities. Before UW, she was a Postdoctoral Associate in Information Science at Cornell University, and she received her PhD in English Literature from Washington University in St. Louis. Trained as a humanist, she is committed to broadening the field of data science. Her research and teaching focus on how we can better understand culture through data and how we can strengthen data science through humanistic methods. She is the author of Introduction to Cultural Analytics and Python, a free online programming textbook for humanities and social science students.

Nicole Bauthier

Nicole Bauthier

VP, data strategy

Nicole Bauthier

is a Vice President of Research Data Strategies at Morgan Stanley. Nicole graduated from Pomona College in 2014 with a degree in Economics. Prior to Morgan Stanely, Nicole worked for BrainStation, YipitData, and NERA Economic Consulting.

Preet Khowaja

Preet Khowaja

student, MS Data Science

Preet Khowaja

is pursuing an MS in Interdisciplinary Data Science at Duke University. Preet graduated from Pomona College in 2020 with a degree in Mathematics. Preet has had internships at Neighborhood Legal Services, Human Rights Watch, Legal Services NYC, and Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Limited.

Lily Xuanchi Liu

Lily Xuanchi Liu

Data Scientist

Lily Liu

is a Data Scientist at Pinterest. Lily graduated from Pomona College in 2017 with degrees in Mathematics and Economics. She completed a Master of Science in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford in 2020.

Amy Watt

Amy Watt

Data Scientist

Amy Watt

is a Data Scientist at Facebook. Amy graduated from Pomona College in 2020 with degrees in Mathematics and Molecular Biology.

Program at a Glance

Time          Event          Place
9:30-9:45 am Registration + Coffee Hahn Courtyard    
9:45-10:00am Welcome Hahn 101
10-11:00am Keynote Address 1 Hahn 101
11-11:30am Networking Coffee Hahn Courtyard
11:30-12:30pm Keynote Address 2 Hahn 101
12:30-2pm lunch on your own
2-3pm Alumnae Panel Hahn 101
3-3:30pm networking coffee Hahn Courtyard
3:30-4:30pm Keynote Address 3 Hahn 101
4:30pm Closing Hahn 101