Race and Racism in Biostatistics
SPH BS 862
Prerequisites: (SPH BS 723 OR SPH BS 730) or consent of instructor. - This course examines the history of race and racism in the development and practice of biostatistics. We will: Study the foundations of demography and race as a categorization and social construct; Recount histories of Galton, Pearson, Fisher, and others as founders of biostatistics and proponents of eugenics; Examine the development of fundamental biostatistics methods (correlation analysis, regression, hypothesis testing) within the context of the times and beliefs of the founders of the field; Deconstruct the implications of race as a covariate or predictor in a model; Explore the impact of racism encoded in collected data and how to mitigate or overcome this bias; Discuss how statistics are wielded in modern discourse surrounding race and reflect on our authority and responsibility as data analysts
FALL 2025 Schedule
Section | Instructor | Location | Schedule | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
A1 | Patil | INS 206 | T 2:00 pm-4:50 pm |
Note that this information may change at any time. Please visit the MyBU Student Portal for the most up-to-date course information.