Short Courses

The Statistician’s Storybook: Crafting Accessible and Engaging Presentations

Sarah Lotspeich, Wake Forest University, and Ana Maria Ortega-Villa, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Communicating statistical research effectively is a crucial skill for engaging diverse audiencesfrom academic peers to policymakers. This short course offers practical guidance on designing and delivering compelling presentations about statistics projects. We will cover best practices for slide design, strategies for conveying complex concepts clearly, key principles for making talks accessible and engaging, and how to tailor presentations to different audiences. Participants will also gain hands-on experience by crafting their own presentations and receiving constructive feedback from instructors and fellow attendees.

Proposed topics include the following:

1. Tools for slide design and visualization (e.g., PowerPoint, Keynote, Beamer, Canva, Markdown)
2. Communicating complex information clearly (e.g., formulas, simulation results)
3. Tailoring presentations to different audiences (e.g., statistical vs. nonstatistical audiences)
4. Best practices for making presentations accessible (e.g., colorblind palettes, availability of slides)
5. Presentation delivery (e.g., practice, volume, tone)

Prerequisites: None but bring a laptop or tablet that can make slides.

Applied SQL for Data Analysis: A Practical Introduction to a Key Data Skill

Maggie Betz, The Data Mine at Purdue University, and Fulya Gokalp Yavuz, The Data Mine at Purdue University

Structured Query Language remains an essential tool for accessing, manipulating, and analyzing data across a wide range of fields. This session offers a practical, technically grounded introduction to SQL, focusing on writing efficient queries, filtering and aggregating data, and joining multiple tables for exploratory analysis. Participants will work with real-world datasets to apply their skills in context, gaining hands-on experience that supports both immediate application and long-term growth in data-focused roles.