From reducing the cost of damages from California wildfires to implementing a new way to sell theatre performances in England, this year’s class of Cambrian College students from the business, crime, and health analytics programs are making their mark with organizations well beyond the boundaries of Greater Sudbury.
Every year, analytics students in their third and final semester undertake a major capstone project to assist an existing organization or company.
One of those students is Laura Ibarra of Newmarket, a student in Cambrian’s crime analytics program, according to a Cambrian College news release.
Ibarra helped develop a comprehensive database and analytics model for Kids At Risk Action, a non-profit organization in Kansas City, Missouri, which provides free vision screening to low-income and at-risk youth.
“My team was involved in the research and data gathering for their upcoming book that will showcase America’s child abuse epidemic. This project was very rewarding as I had the opportunity to apply and work on skills I had learned throughout the crime analytics program, while also contributing to a great cause in the hopes that it leads toward change for those children that are wrongfully suffering,” Ibarra said.
The geographic database and analytics model will help Kids at Risk better identify locations and demographic groups who are underserviced, and help the organization advocate on behalf of at-risk youth.
“This year, our students have really fanned out across the globe to put their skills to good use and actually help run a business,” said Sidney Shapiro, professor and program coordinator of Cambrian’s business and crime analytics programs. “We are hearing great feedback from the organizations about the talent and hard work of our students.”
Another team of Cambrian crime analytics students worked on a project called CrowdDoing with San Francisco-based organizations ReFrame It and Match4Action Foundation to develop a risk analysis model that would allow insurers and governments to invest in forest fire mitigation strategies to reduce the cost of damages from fires.
Other students worked with San Francisco-based 3DHeals on marketing and consumer research and promotional strategies. 3DHeals was formed in 2015 to assist innovators and start-up companies in the field of health-care-related 3D printing and bioprinting.
Another group of analytics students took part in an initiative that utilized blockchain technology to create the first-ever non-fungible token (NFT) for a theatre performance for a partner organization in London, England. An NFT is a digital currency token that is limited and authenticated, potentially increasing the value of the object.