UT Dallas hosts Young Women in Science and Engineering event

The University of Texas at Dallas recently hosted an annual competition culminating the year’s Young Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Investigators program, which allows high school and community college students to gain first-hand experience in STEM fields.

After receiving training and assistance throughout the years from a UT Dallas student and faculty mentors, a teacher mentor, and an industry mentor, the teams presented the results of their research. The winning team, from Richardson High School, presented a robotic arm that used magnetic sensors to lift and move objects, showing how magnetic sensing can help robots interact with their environments.

This was the program’s fourth year, and UT Dallas expects that next year will see more student participants.

“Each year, the Young WISE Investigators program has continued to improve, strengthening its model and its effectiveness in helping to narrow the gender gap in STEM innovation and achievement,” assistant to the provost Magaly Spector, who founded the program, said. “The program team looks forward to continuing upon this trajectory by broadening participation to more schools and students, deepening connections with high school STEM teachers and curricula, and creating more structured opportunities for young women to learn firsthand how they can advance science and engineering research to improve the world around them.”