Learn more about the great individuals within Arts ISIT and the wide range of services we support.
Details
Name
William Strausser
Job title
Data Analyst
Team
Learning Analytics
Interview
What year did you begin to work at Arts ISIT?
2022
Describe what you do at Arts ISIT
As a member of the Learning Analytics team, I provide stakeholders from across the Faculty of Arts with data and reporting to support strategic decision making, policy compliance, and other functions where quality data is needed.
Recently, my work has been shifting towards our database, where I work on data modelling, ingestion, and transformation, and providing our team with raw data that is ready to feed reports and new analytics projects. Much of this has been focused on the transition to Workday Student, which will soon replace many of our current data sources.
What is the best thing about the work you do at Arts ISIT?
As an Arts alum, I enjoy being able to do work that helps my alma mater, particularly at a time when rapid technology growth presents numerous challenges for higher education. Data that is accurate, timely, and insightful is crucial to ensuring that Arts continues to adapt to these challenges. I especially love any time I get to work directly with members of our community and watch as the data either confirms or contests their assumptions.
What are your areas of expertise?
My expertise includes normal analytics tasks like data wrangling and visualization, in addition to building data pipelines and automation for testing and deployment of our data infrastructure. Most of this work is done using Python, SQL, and Tableau.
In the non-technical realm, my work requires substantial subject matter expertise in order to translate complex data constructs into actionable insights for stakeholders.
In terms of formal education, I earned my BA in Asian Area Studies from UBC with an emphasis on Japanese culture and history. While of little direct relation to analytics, this humanities background helps guide my work everyday.
Which services does your work relate to?
Please list some related projects/tools/resources you work on
- Arts Datamart Workday Retrofit Project (replacing SIS data sources with Workday Student)
- Arts Tableau
- Annual Planning Budget (APB) reports
- Various ad-hoc analytics projects
Can you share some of your personal interests or hobbies?
I am a passionate music listener and spent most of my high school years running a radio show and working at a record store. Though I was a long-haired metalhead back then, I will happily listen to and chat about any genre! My favourite artists include John Coltrane, Iron Maiden, The Velvet Underground, and Kendrick Lamar.
Outside of music, I have long been interested in film and once planned to pursue an MA and PhD focused on post-war Japanese cinema. I also enjoy photography and food/cooking, and am a 6-kyu Go player.
