Douglas Graham
Rice University
Houston (29.7° N, 95.3° W)

featuring Dr. Karen Book, Senior Data Analyst, Boston Public Schools, Boston (42.3° N, 71.0° W)

Dr. Karen Book is a senior data analyst at Boston Public Schools. She works on the planning and analysis team, where she evaluates and presents data to support the school district’s enrollment planning. She graduated from Rice University with a sociology degree in 2011 and earned a PhD in sociology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2016. While earning her doctorate, Dr. Book worked as an associate editor at the journal Social Forces, as a predoctoral trainee at the Carolina Population Center, and as a teaching fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Our interview began with a conversation about Dr. Book’s path from college to her current profession as a senior data analyst. At Rice, she discovered an interest in understanding inequality with data investigation and for that reason decided to pursue a PhD in sociology. While she continued to enjoy analyzing data to study education and inequality in her doctoral program, Dr. Book found that the emphasis on publishing in academia did not align with her values. Hoping to take part in actionable research with direct impacts on communities, she became a data analyst, which allowed her to use the skills she learned in education, such as Stata and Microsoft Excel, to tell stories with data. By using data to show trends in school enrollment, Dr. Book and her team contribute to district decisions that result in positive outcomes for their community and school district. Dr. Book emphasized that software programs allow analysts to process data more efficiently and make more sophisticated diagrams and conclusions.

One significant piece of information I took from our conversation was that if you have an interest in a field of social science like sociology, learning data analysis through software programs will open interesting doors for your career. Dr. Book explained that data is the underlying language being used in many social science fields; knowing how to use it effectively is key to understanding and communicating ideas within those fields. In Dr. Book’s career, her unique combination of expertise with the technical software Stata and her passion for combating inequality in communities set her on the path to a profession she finds meaningful. I found this interesting because social sciences are often separated from STEM fields in college, but there are many jobs where proficiency in both is necessary. I also learned from Dr. Book that it is perfectly fine, and sometimes necessary, to stray from the specific academic path you have set for yourself as you discover more about what kind of work you find rewarding. Dr. Book’s decision to pursue data analysis in education instead of continuing in academia was difficult for her, since it involved changing her career direction and having tough conversations with her colleagues, but it was key to finding a career that corresponded with her values.

In addition to our discussion about career paths, I found Dr. Book’s current projects at Boston Public Schools and how she uses certain skills from college and graduate school in her work particularly compelling. She and her team pull, organize, and analyze data on student enrollment in particular schools, programs, and grades. Then they find patterns in data so the district can decide whether more schools or classrooms are needed for a particular neighborhood or program. Throughout the process, data serves as the foundation for important planning conversations at Boston Public Schools. Dr. Book uses this data to communicate a story that engages community members and school district officials. Her work results in outcomes that benefit students, families, and educators. From Dr. Book’s description of her work, I gained an appreciation of data’s importance in supporting education and uplifting communities. All in all, our interview taught me that there are multiple ways you can explore your field of interest, both inside and outside of academia, and the specific path you should choose depends on what you value and find rewarding.

Highlights from the interview:

Everyone’s family, community, and life circumstances create an initial role for them in society. What was expected of you? Did you adhere to it or stray from it?

I think my family always had high expectations for education. I was always a good student. I enjoyed school, and that led well through high school and into college. When I was in college at Rice University, I discovered that you could make a whole career out of being a researcher, and that’s when I decided to go pursue my PhD in sociology at the University of North Carolina (UNC).

While I was at UNC, I thought I was on that path to be a professor, to be an academic researcher, and things were going well. I was again pretty good at it. You say you have certain paths set for you…I got onto that academic path early in graduate school, but it was probably my third or fourth year of my PhD program that I realized that while I really enjoyed sociological research and data-driven study of education, inequality, life course studies, and that kind of thing…I was finding that the value structure and the reward structure in academia was something that I was not enjoying, and that’s the stereotypical “publish or perish.” There’s a huge emphasis on publishing, and I interpreted that a lot of times as publishing for the sake of publishing, and publishing for the prestige of publishing, rather than publishing data or research that could be shared and built on. I much more enjoyed that part of it versus the actual following through and publishing of things. That’s when I had to break from my path.

I had an incredibly supportive mentor throughout my graduate school years, and when I told her I wasn’t sure If I wanted to follow in her footsteps and become a tenured professor, tenured research professor, that was a hard conversation to do, but I’m really glad I did it, because the work I’m doing now much more closely aligns with things I value in terms of what’s rewarded, what’s valued, that kind of thing. And doing research that gets used.

When did you start to envision yourself as a data analyst for your profession? Was there a certain turning point?

I had always been a data analyst in a sense, and that was the part I really enjoyed. I loved our weekly check-ins with both my mentor in undergrad as well as my advisor in grad school. We’d talk about the data; I’d show them the latest regressions I’d run. We would talk through what does this mean, what does this mean. And there was always this sense—I want to build on it, I want to build on it. But the next step would be like okay, well, time to write it into a paper. I didn’t mind the writing of the paper, that was also an interesting exercise, it was having to wait six to 24 months…sending it off to different people. I wanted that instant gratification, almost. Things take time. At least in my role now, I think things are taking time because they’re still being built on in an actionable way versus just a paper floating out, sitting on some other professor’s desk or researcher’s desk, waiting to be reviewed and built on. The process was just too slow for me, and the outcome didn’t seem to be worth all that time for me.

What led you to your current position, and what do you do in your current position?

I was searching for jobs in Boston. I was doing an internet search of one of those—Indeed or LinkedIn—where you can type in keywords and job postings will come up. I typed in the software that I use, which is Stata. It is used a lot in economics and in sociology, as well as other academic fields. It’s statistical software that is akin to R or SAS or these softwares that are more well-known, especially in the nonprofit, government, private sector. I searched for Stata, because that’s what I was good at, that’s what I know how to use. And a job at Boston Public Schools popped up, and I clicked on it. As I’m reading the job description, I’m like, “Oh my gosh, this job is perfect for me.” It was using data to explain things, to help identify inequities, et cetera. The job has shifted since the original job description, which is why I’m being a little vague. I saw this and thought, wow, they value someone with a strong quantitative background, but it’s also an organization that’s doing important work every single day and is directly impacting the way we’re serving the students and children of Boston, and so I applied.

What are some of those improvements that you mention your work is doing?

My current role now is I’m on the planning and analysis team at BPS. In summary, the work I do is using data to support short-term and long-term planning in the district around enrollment. We use enrollment data, what students are attending what schools, in certain programs in various grades. We look for patterns in those ways. We provide data on what programs are growing, and we might need to open new classrooms. We also identify what parts of the city have fewer seats relative to the number of students who live there—so there’s a capacity shortage, so that’s where we’d recommend building new schools or opening new classrooms in these areas. That’s just one of the many things our team is doing as part of a larger process. I’m not the one making those decisions, not by far, but I’m pulling the data, and I’m organizing the analyses we’re doing.

Other than your knowledge of Stata, what are some other skills that you find yourself utilizing a lot in your position? How did your college years prepare you?

I think the skills that I learned in college and grad school, as well for a little bit [on the job is]—how to tell a story with data. I think, at the end of the day, that’s what appealed to me about being a professional sociologist or a researcher. And then what is further parlayed into this career being so rewarding for me is interpreting numbers and making it accessible to an audience, whether that’s through writing a memo or a paper as I may have done in college or a presentation that I did in college. Now I’m doing a similar thing. I’m taking data, and I’m helping people understand what the data means. I’m making it accessible to a layperson or somebody who maybe understands a lot more about what’s happening inside of the schools. I can bring them information about enrollment patterns that maybe they had seen to some extent but didn’t really fully understand until I put it in certain ways. I walk people through it, answer their questions. That’s something that’s always really appealed to me.

Are there ever any misconceptions about your profession or about what you do?

I think a lot of people might hear “analyst” and think that we’re doing really high-level, super in-depth statistical analyses all the time and that we’re just in front of our computers all day, not talking to anybody. And there are definitely moments when that’s happening, and I’ll have my scripts running, and they’re super intense, and people are like, “What is that? What are you doing? That’s crazy.” But a lot of what I do is a lot more simple descriptive statistics. I think the power of descriptive statistics and just simple charts can really be powerful. And, as I mentioned earlier, that telling of the story—sometimes the more complicated statistical model that you run isn’t necessarily the most important data that you analyze nor is it necessarily better because it’s more complicated. There’s just an element of analysts being engaged with data and doing analytics, but there is that element of translating it. How do we make it approachable to an audience? And that audience includes people that I work with in the central office, it includes principals, it includes school communities and families…Basically, there’s a lot more to being an analyst, at least in my role, than just being in the data all day long and doing crazy complicated things.

What parts of Boston Public Schools make it a good place to work?

I am constantly in awe of how many smart and capable people I work with. On my own team, I have so much respect for the people I work with, and that makes it fun, it makes it good, makes it a reason to come into work every day. I really respect and value everyone on my team, but then that extends to other people in the central office. There’s really the sense of doing it for the students. The work we’re doing is grounded in schools, and the principals that I get to work with are just some of the most excellent people because they are engaged in making sure their schools are welcoming and rigorous and a place where children can feel safe and learn. So I think being a part of an organization like Boston Public Schools is great because I get to do the work that I enjoy. I’m doing it for an organization that I believe in, in the sense that everyone’s in it for the kids, and I think they’re doing a good job. I mean there’s always room for improvement. BPS, like all urban school districts, faces so many challenges, but I really respect the people I work with. I think that makes it a great place to work.

How are science and technology reshaping your work, and what changes do you foresee in your specific area?

Let’s just say that a lot of the statistical power and data that we have now, we didn’t have 10 years ago. I wasn’t here 10 years ago, but I hear stories of how things were 10 years ago. There was that same, “Oh, we want to be equitable and do things in the best way we can,” but there wasn’t that level of data infrastructure and people around who could interact with it in the same way. So I think the fact that we can run scripts in R and Stata, generate a bunch of tools…that kind of thing wasn’t being done in the district five, 10 years ago. Having the additional machine power behind us has really enabled us to tell the story faster, with more intricate charts and reports. I think our leadership really values data as something that’s really important and valuable, and that’s part of the reason our team has come together and has thrived. We have all this data, we know how to use it, and people in the district value it and value the work we’re doing.

What advice would you give students interested in the field?

I’ll give some broad advice, which is if you have an interest in analysis but you also have an interest in urban education or sociology or insert whatever non-STEM field, I think as data is becoming more and more prevalent, it’s the language that everyone’s using in almost all fields these days. I didn’t even know a job like mine existed when I was in college. And maybe it didn’t. Maybe it’s a newer job. There has been this increase in jobs that use data as the quantity of data has increased. But I think I would challenge or advise students who are interested in this kind of work to also think about where your passions are—I know that’s kind of cliché—because there’s just data and analyses happening in every field. And so, not limiting yourself to working at a tech company or for a consulting firm or something. There are people doing that work in every field, and I think pushing people to think through, “How could I be doing data work in a field that interests me? Or a field that I feel passionate about?” like urban education or whatever thing that is interesting to you. Those jobs are out there, and the numbers are growing, so I encourage students to keep up with the latest trends in data and analyses and the latest software. Data visualization is becoming hugely important, so those kind of skills—brush up on those skills. Think about the industries you might not think about as having roles for data analysts. I bet that they do.

I would want to give students permission to stray from the path that they think that they’re on. If you think your major is setting you up for only a certain type of job, or you think that your interests are only setting you up for a certain type of job, don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Network with people and things that you didn’t think you could do with your major. Spend a lot of time thinking about what you want to do, and don’t just stay on the path that someone is laid out for you because you have certain skills or you’ve taken certain classes so far. Obviously, your major and your classes are important, but the longer you’re in a job, the less relevant they become. So if you can establish that you have the skills and the interest in jobs that maybe you didn’t think about before, you’re qualified for more jobs than you probably think. If you spend some time thinking about that and thinking off the path, I think there’s a lot of potential for really cool opportunities out there.

Interview excerpts have been lightly edited for clarity and readability and approved by the interviewee.