January 22, 2024 – The Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley and USAFacts, based in Bellevue, WA, jointly announce the launch of their 2024 Data Skills for Congress certificate program. The pilot cohort from Spring 2023 included 38 professional and member staff in Congress. 

Data Skills for Congress is a free program tailored to the needs of congressional staff. Led by experts in government data, the program teaches participants how to find, evaluate, and use data effectively in congressional policymaking and how to craft legislation to ensure public data is accessible and usable. 

The 2024 program includes content on artificial intelligence (AI) and discussion of the connections between public data and public sector AI applications.

Participants will gain both conceptual knowledge and practical skills, with modules focused on the following: 

• Knowing where and how to access public data.
• Applying methods and tools for evaluating, using, and visualizing data, including in policy analysis, committee support, legislation drafting, and constituent communications.
• Assessing and incorporating emerging technologies, including AI tools, into congressional work.
• Understanding US federal open data policy’s intended meaning and its gaps, and identifying technology policy challenges to federal data access.
• Explaining common data challenges, including how local control, software selection, and federal policy can shape data access and quality.

Classes are fully remote, with live sessions held weekly from March 22nd through May 31st, 2024. In addition to 15 online class hours, the program will host two in-person events in DC and participants will complete a capstone project to showcase their learning and development. Participants who successfully meet the program requirements will receive a certificate of completion from UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy. 

The application is now open. The priority application deadline is Friday, February 2nd and preference will be given to applicants who submit before this date. The final deadline for applications is Friday, February 23rd. A recording of the Jan 29 info session is available upon request.

In a rapidly evolving digital age, this program helps Congress leverage the same tools available to the private sector to adapt and meet the needs of policymakers and constituents. The Data Skills for Congress program reflects the Goldman School’s mission to mobilize the best intellectual resources at UC Berkeley and beyond to help current and future leaders innovate, make evidence-based decisions, and promote the public good.  It also aligns with USAFact’s mission to support the use of data to create and analyze public policy. 

To apply and learn more about Data Skills for Congress, please visit our website at: https://goldman.school/data-skills-for-congress.