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Liz Roten
I am a highly motivated data scientist and cartographer with a passion for data visualization. I make complex topics easy to understand using compelling visual design. My static and interactive visualizations are attractive and powerful tools for decision making.
Experience
Senior Data Scientist
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
Current - 2024
- Data scientist in travel research and modeling.
- Duties include data visualization, research methods and statistical model development, and R package development and maintenance.
- Promoted from standard in Februrary 2024
Data Scientist
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
2024 - 2018
- Data scientist in community development research and travel research and modeling.
- Duties include data visualization, research methods and statistical model development, and R package development and maintenance.
- Promoted from Associate in May 2021
Research Intern
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
2018
- Developed innovative method for using aggregated and anonymized location-based services (LBS)/ cell phone location data to analyze regional parks traffic patterns across multiple seasons and years.
- Independently created an interactive, online data visualization using open-source tools, such as R Shiny, and a git-based workflow.
- Successfully presented findings to stakeholders and provided complete documentation.
Every Penny Counts Emergency Financial Assistance Program Assistant
JustUs Health
St. Paul, MN
2018 - 2016
- Completed tasks such as check requests, posting, data management, record keeping, and program development.
Sexual Health Educator
Macalester College Health and Wellness Center
St. Paul, MN
2018 - 2015
- Collaboratively developed sexual health education curriculum for all first-year students
- Worked with student organizations and administrative offices to provide seminars on topics including sexual violence, Title IX Policy, and healthy relationships
Submissions Manager
Persephone’s Daughters
Remote
2017 - 2015
- Helped produce a high quality literary magazine that fulfills the mission of empowering women who have experienced various forms of abuse and degradation.
- Organized all prose, poetry, and art submissions and direct an international staff via internet communication.
Teaching Fellow
Breakthrough Twin Cities
St. Paul, MN
2017 - 2015
- Taught 7th and 9th grade students in Summers 2015 and 2016 with independently developed math and epidemiology curricula
- Planned and executed a leadership retreat for about 40 ninth grade students.
- Planned and executed a two hour show displaying our students’ hard work to an audience of at most 650 people, as well as a display hallway, potluck, t-shirt, and planning necessary for each.
Health Advocate
Minnesota Internship Center Charter High School
Minneapolis, MN
2016 - 2016
- Advocated for students ages 14-21 in doctor, dental, vision, and health insurance needs.
- Served as certified Mnsure navigator
Communications Chair
Tennessee Conference of the United Methodist Church
Nashville, TN
2014 - 2012
- Elected by peers to direct photography and video production for large youth events
- Coordinated peers, administrative staff, and conference production company staff
Education
B.A., Geography, (Data Science, Community and Global Health)
Macalester College
St. Paul, MN
2018 - 2014
- Emphasis on data science, GIS, quantitative research methods, and visual design
Select projects and talks
The ‘I’ in Team - Peer-to-peer best practices for growing data science teams
posit::conf(2023)
Chicago, IL
September 2023
- How to gracefully expand your team without pulling your hair out
Transportation System Performance Evaluation
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
May 2023
- A comprehensive review of the Twin Cities transportation system, built with R and Quarto
Oddly Satisyfing - Find delight in the mundane
rstudio::conf(2022)
Washington, D.C.
July 2022
- How to take a project you hate and turn it into something you love
COVID-19 Surveillance at the Metro Plant
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
February 2022
- Open source project and R Shiny app
Regional Truck Corridor Study
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
December 2021
- Making a legacy project reproducible
Regional Parks and the American Community Survey
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
March 2021
- Interactive visualization displaying regional parks and trails in context with American Community Survey (ACS) demographic data
Twin Cities Rent Trends
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
February 2021
- Interactive dashboard for analyzing rental housing market trends in the seven-county Twin Cities region
- Users can compare metrics by data source and visualize the relationship between rent and vacancy rates
Using Location Based Services Data for Calculating the Greenhouse Emissions of Communities in the Minnesota Metropolitan Region
2020 AMPO Virtual Conference
Remote
October 2020
- To address the scarcity of transportation emissions data in Minnesota, the Metropolitan Council of the Twin Cities has developed greenhouse gas emission estimates for transportation and land for cities, townships, and counties of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Region. This session will demonstrate how to leverage big data to centralize this type of research, save public funding, and enable communities to focus their efforts on implementing strategies to become more sustainable.
councilR
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
October 2020
- Created and maintained an organization specific R package
- Package includes templates, color palettes, and standard data processing functions
Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Passenger and Commercial Transportation
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
July 2020
- Independently developed technique for estimating greenhouse gas emissions from commerical and passenger vehicles
- Collaborated with colleagues to include data in comprehensive greenhouse gas emissions inventory
Minimum distance to COVID-19 testing facilities
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
July 2020
- A map series analyzing how COVID-19 testing centers are distributed across Minnesota
A brief introduction to R packages and package development
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
May 2020
- Introduction to the R package I wrote for the Metropolitan Council
- I review the anatomy of an R package, highlight a few package features, and provide an overview of how to use GitHub for collaboration at the Council.
Who is a local? Using aggregated cell phone location data to research regional parks visitors
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
March 2020
- Tallk and workshop for students on using aggregated location-based services (LBS) data to gain insights on regional parks visitors
Como Regional Park Hex Grid StreetLight Analysis
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
June 2019
- Visualize high activity areas within Como Regional Park and seasonal trends
3 Years of Mental Health: A quantified-self story
lizroten.com
St. Paul, MN
December 2017
- Mapping my travel patterns and mental health from 2015-2017
Chuck Green Civic Engagement Fellowship
JustUs Health
St. Paul, MN
2017
- Independently researched mental health disparities through large-scale client survey and literature review
- Gathered comprehensive feedback from JustUs staff through focus groups and interviews
Select Data Science Writing
I blog about data science and visualization on my website lizroten.com
Color Palette Exploration
lizroten.com
N/A
July 2022
- Color palette exploration with ggplot2 and generative methods
Converting Peloton resistance to Bowflex C6 resistance
lizroten.com
N/A
March 2021
- Visualizing spin bike difficulty
Finding the perfect sock pattern with ravelRy
lizroten.com
N/A
April 2020
- Using the Ravelry API to find just the right sock pattern
How eMoods Aided My Recovery And Inspired My Data Science Career
emoodtracker.com
N/A
February 2021
- Guest blog post on mental health and data science resulting from my “3 Years of Mental Health: A quantified-self story” project
Housing Density in US Cities
lizroten.com
N/A
February 2020
- Examining residential zoning in Pittsburgh, Austin, and Boston
Fisk’s ‘Mississippi Meander’ in R
lizroten.com
N/A
October 2019
- A few maps inspired by Harold Fisk’s 1944 geological investigation
HIV and African American Populations in the US
Macalester College
N/A
November 2017
- A value-by-alpha map showing the intersection of African American populations and HIV prevalence
Awards
Productivity and Goal Attainment
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
2023
- Awarded for work on the Transporation System Performance Evaluation
Keystone Award
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
2022
- A cross-functional team came together to effectively share our monitoring data on the Met Council’s COVID-19 wastewater surveillance webpage and with the media.
- The Keystone Award recognizes employees who demonstrate exceptional work performance. The award recognizes employees for being good ambassadors for the agency and for delivering unique, exceptional and inspired projects.
Community Builder Award - Dream Team
Metropolitan Council
St. Paul, MN
2021
- Awarded along with Todd Graham, Matt Schroeder, and Krysten Ryba-Tures for outstanding work in measuring and visualizing how the COVID-19 pandemic affects the region’s workers and households with focus on race/ethnicity and cultural group disparities.