Instructor

  • Thomas McAndrew
    Associate Professor Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, College of Health
    Joint Appointment at Catastrophe Modeling Center
    Courtesy Affiliation in Mathematics Department, College of Arts and Sciences

Course Description

College students are at increased risk of influenza infection during their time on campus. Yet, students often have little awareness of ongoing flu activity. This course adapts successful principles from weather communication to health: weekly flu news columns, weather-style video “healthcasts,” and an interactive dashboard. Students will gain interdisciplinary skills in forecasting, communication, AV production, and evaluation. The semester culminates in an integrated communication package for the Lehigh campus.

Weekly Schedule

Week 1: Introduction & Motivation
Overview of influenza risks on campus, project structure, and goals.

Week 2: Weather Communication Principles
Rhetorical devices used by meteorologists; watch and analyze weathercasts.

Week 3: Translating Weather to Health
Adapting rhetorical devices for flu communication; group lists and exercises.

Week 4: Infectious Disease Forecasting Basics
Introduction to influenza models; simple modeling lab.

Week 5: Data Sources & Visualization
Explore Health & Wellness data; create plots of past flu seasons.

Week 6: Writing for the Public
News column training; draft first campus flu column.

Week 7: Audio/Visual Communication I
Studio orientation; practice delivering short scripts on teleprompter.

Week 8: Audio/Visual Communication II
Editing, graphics, captions; produce first short video healthcast.

Week 9: Building Dashboards I
Intro to dashboards; build static visualization with historical data.

Week 10: Building Dashboards II
Add forecasts and real-time updates; prototype campus dashboard.

Week 11: Evaluation & Metrics
Design strategies for measuring communication impact (clicks, opens, engagement).

Week 12: Integrating Modalities
Combine text, AV, and dashboards into a communication package.

Week 13: Project Finalization
Final edits and group presentations.

Week 14: Reflection & Next Steps
Discuss cross-campus expansion, submit final communication portfolio.

Skills Developed

  • Infectious disease modeling & forecasting
  • Health communication strategies
  • Audio/video production
  • Data visualization and dashboard design
  • Evalua