APT and Byte Back Announce Findings from Recent Data Dive Partnership

Members of the Byte Back team (left) with the APT Data Dive teams, who turned out amazing analysis in just 24 hours.

Byte Back has received incredible insight from data to help us better serve students, thanks to Applied Predictive Technologies (APT) and its more than 40 employees who worked over a 24-hour period in a hackathon-style data dive.

Members of the APT team donated their time and impressive talents to analyze a very rich data set, including four years of information on Byte Back students, success rates, employment, and locations.

APT’s data dives are a chance for their employees to lend analytical and engineering skills to local causes. In each data dive, APT partners with a local nonprofit organization with the mission of helping them make better data-driven decisions. Previous data dives have included those with Goodwill of Greater Washington, DC Prep, Capital Area Foodbank, and AppleTree Institute.

Anthony Bruce, APT CEO, said, “At APT we are committed to generating data-driven value not only for our clients, but also for nonprofit organizations within our community. We are thrilled to have partnered with Byte Back and are confident that these findings will further their mission of improving the economic opportunity for individuals in the District.”

Monique Riviere, chief program officer, shares information about Byte Back students and program to the more than 40 members of the APT data dive teams.

For the data dive partnership with Byte Back, three APT teams conducted analysis to identify factors that lead to student success and to determine where Byte Back should locate its classrooms to optimize student access. The teams presented their findings at a session at APT’s headquarters in Arlington, VA, and the Byte Back team was thrilled by the analysis they were able to return in just 24 hours.

“We will utilize every single one of these findings in making our program better and influencing our students’ lives,” Elizabeth Lindsey, executive director, said after the the APT teams shared their findings. “Byte Back is so grateful to the APT teams for their enthusiasm and generosity in helping us pursue data-driven excellence.”

Here are some of the key points of analysis and findings from the data dive that will help drive Byte Back and our students to increased success:

1)    Resource Allocation: How can Byte Back use its limited resources to maximize the number of students who get hired?

First, APT identified common characteristics of students who were unlikely to complete and/or pass a class. Then they pinpointed at-risk students and class levels where students need additional resources, like tutoring and intervention. Using this information, Byte Back will be able to have the greatest impact on student success.

2)    Student Retention and Success: What student and program characteristics contribute to student success?

The APT team predicted student outcomes (e.g., re-enrollment, drop-out, employment, etc.) based on various student characteristics, including housing status, gender, and age. The team discovered that employed students are more likely to complete their courses. These findings and others will enable Byte Back to better inform student course placement and support.

3)    Classroom Location: Where should Byte Back locate its classes?

The APT team also tackled another important challenge for Byte Back: identifying the class locations within the community that align with the organization’s mission and are located in accessible areas for students. By analyzing the performance of 40 of Byte Back’s past classroom locations, the team  predicted expected enrollment from 99 potential new classroom sites in DC. Combining this with other factors like metro accessibility and demographics of the area, the team identified the top 10 locations for the organization to consider for future classes. In addition, the team built custom map software for Byte Back to use for easy and effective location planning.