Participant Information

Logistics

Event Details

Date & Time

Virtual kickoff: October 8, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. 

Join the virtual kickoff

In-person event: October 16, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.

 

Venue

Location: The Nicholas Center at Brightpoint Community College

Address: 13101 Route 1 Chester, Virginia 23831

Parking: Free parking directly in front of venue

Questions: odga@odga.virginia.gov

Schedule

Event Agenda

Oct. 8: Virtual kickoff

Join the virtual kickoff

12:00 PM

Event start

12:05 PM

Opening remarks

12:10 PM

Event information: All about the Datathon

12:20 PM

How to use the Virginia Open Data Portal

12:30 PM

How to create a winning presentation

12:40 PM

Visualizations: Making a Chart that Makes a point

12:50 PM

Q&A

Oct. 9-15: Team work days

  • Subject matter expert sessions will take place on Oct 13. between 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. 
  • A one-page written summary of your solution is due by 12:00 PM on Thursday, Oct. 15 before presentations.

Oct. 16: In-person Datathon Event

9:00 AM

Check-In & Welcome

10:00 AM

Opening Remarks & Keynote Speaker

11:00 AM

Presentations

12:00 PM

Lunch*

1:00 PM

Presentations

2:00 PM

Workshop led by the ODGA team

2:45 PM

Deliberation & Awards Ceremony

*Lunch options include the following:

  1. BLT Devine Sandwich Box Lunch: Bacon, lettuce, tomato and provolone cheese served on sourdough with mayonnaise on the side. 
  2. Classic Garden Salad Box Lunch: Green leaf lettuce, bell pepper, radishes, carrots, cucumbers, red onions, tomatoes, and sprouts. Served with home-baked herbed croutons with dressing on the side
  3. The Club Sandwich Box Lunch: Oven roasted turkey breast, smoky pit ham and dill-havarti cheese served on sourdough bread with mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato.
  4. Roast Turkey Breast Sandwich Box Lunch: Moist, tender turkey breast and provolone cheese served on Italian ciabatta bread with honey mustard dressing and mayonnaise on the side. Served with lettuce and tomato.



Format

Presentation Format

 Expo-Style Presentations

This year's Datathon will use an expo-style presentation format. Each team will be assigned a dedicated station to display and present their work. Judges rotate through the room to visit and evaluate each team individually.

More details on presentation requirements, including display materials and timing, will be shared with registered teams closer to the event.

Note for participants: Additional presentation guidelines coming soon. Check back here or watch your inbox for updates from odga@odga.virginia.gov.

Resources

Finding Open Data

Teams should start with Commonwealth open datasets and may supplement with any additional publicly available data. Key resources:

Virginia Open Data Portal

The official Commonwealth hub for housing, health, demographics, and more. Data has been gathered on the Open Data Portal specifically for the 2026 Datathon under the "Datathon 2026" organization tile. Data will be made available under this organization tile on the first day of the competition. 

Visit the data.virginia.gov

U.S. Census Bureau

American Community Survey, population estimates, and economic indicators at county and tract level.

Visit data.census.gov

Virginia Department of Health

Public health statistics, vital records data, and community health profiles statewide.

Visit vdh.virginia.gov/data

HUD Open Data

Housing affordability, fair market rents, and assisted housing datasets by geography.

Visit huduser.gov

EIA Energy Data

Electricity prices, residential energy consumption, and utility coverage by state and county.

Visit eia.gov

SCHEV Data Portal

Virginia higher education enrollment, completion rates, tuition, and outcome data.

Visit research.schev.edu

Support

Data Questions & Subject Matter Experts

We've Got Experts On Call

Subject matter experts from Virginia state agencies will be made available to help teams understand the data and navigate available resources. They can clarify dataset definitions, explain agency context, and point you to supplemental sources.

Name Organization Expertise
Ainsley Raymond Virginia Tech Center for Housing Research Housing in Virginia and data provided by the Virginia Tech Center for Housing Research for the Datathon
Woody Rogers Partnership for Housing Affordability Housing in Virginia, Housing Affordability
Gail Jennings Department of Social Services Data provided by the Virginia Department of Social Services for the Datathon and social programs for Virginia
Bharat Savaram Office of Data Governance and Analytics Visualizations/Power BI
Bernard Karcher Office of Data Governance and Analytics Excel
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