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  • STEM
    Donate
    • Home
    • About Us
    • Directors
    • Program Details
    • Past Program
    • FAQ
    • Sponsors
    • Contact Us
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    • Our Mission

      STEM bridge program aims to create synergies in STEM education by providing high-school students hands-on study experience with current university professors at local universities for a consecutive 6 to 7 weeks STEM related researching and study program.

       

      "[Science] is more than a school subject, or the periodic table, or the properties of waves. It is an approach to the world, a critical way to understand and explore and engage with the world, and then have the capacity to change that world..."

      * President Barack Obama, March 23, 2015

    • What can CAST's STEM bridge do for you?

      Organized by CAST-TX, the program is collectively led by 10 – 12 hosting professors, each professor will form a 4-5 students study group to research on a STEM related topic that has been or will be offered in the university classes.

      Students will get great exposure to real research environment and being inspired for creative thinking.

      6-7 weeks hands-on experience

      Before the class starts, students will choose a research topic, and form a study group with other students in the program that share the similar interest.

      Once the study group is formed, the group and together with the assigned professor will decide on the details of how the research will be conducted.

      Students will be able to use the university classroom, research equipment, and labs under professors’ supervision.

      Competition for Awards

      STEM bridge Summer Camp program will host a final symposium for students to showcase their research result.

      At the symposium, students will compete for CAST STAR (Science, Tech, Academic Researcher) Awards and the winner will receive STAR trophy.

      Students who completed the program will also receive a certificate of completion issued by CAST-TX.

       

      STEM Skills Development

      By working with professors and researchers in the lab, students will develop a variety of skills that are essential for STEM students to succeed in collage, such as literature search, data collection, data analysis, design of experiments, technical writing, presentation, and problem-solving, etc.

       

      Non-profit & for the future of our children

      The hosting professors are all volunteering their time to sponsor CAST STEM bridge Summer Camp program. Each hosting professor will use their own resources and leverage their expertise to maximize the impact they can bring to the community. All CAST STEM bridge organizers and workers are all volunteers. We are here for the community and our children’s future.

    • Directors

      Dr. Dong Qian

      Director of STEM Bridge

      Professor of Mechanical Engineering,

      UT Dallas

       

      UTD 001

       

      Research interests:

      Computational Mechanics, Multiscale Methods and Applications, Surface Engineering

       

      dong.qian@utdallas.edu

       

       

      Dr. Arif S. Malik

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 002

       

      Research interests:

      Efficient Computational Mechanics Modeling, Uncertainty Analysis, Manufacturing Process Prediction, Reliability-Based Design Optimization, and Laser Treatment of Metals to Extend Fatigue Life.

      arif.malik@utdallas.edu

      Dr. Latifur Khan

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Professor in Computer Science,

      UT Dallas

       

      UTD 003

       

      Research interests:

      Big Data Management and Analytics, Data Mining, Database Systems, Semantic Web, and Complex Data Management (Multimedia, Geo-Spatial)

       

      Latifur.khan@utdallas.edu

       

      Dr. Hongbing Lu

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Louis A. Beecherl Jr. Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 004

       

      Research interests:

      Experimental mechanics, Nanomechanics, Mechanics of Time-Dependent Materials, Mechanical Behavior of Nanomaterials, Dynamic behavior of materials, Fracture Mechanics

       

      Hongbing.lu@utdallas.edu

      Dr. Weili Wu

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 005

       

      Research interests:

      Big Data Management and Analysis, Social Networks, Database Systems, Wireless Sensor Networks, Data Mining, Spatial Data Mining, Parallel and Distributed Systems, Algorithm Design and Analysis and Bioinformatics

       

      weiliwu@utdallas.edu

      Dr. Golden Kumar

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 006

       

      Research interests:

      Nanomanufacturing, Metallic Glasses, Nanomechanics, Surface Engineering, Phase Transformations, and Photothermal Properties

       

      Golden.Kumar@utdallas.edu

       

       

      Dr. Xiaohu Guo

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Professor of Computer Science, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 007

       

      Research interests:

      Computer Graphics, Computer Vision, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality, Geometric Modeling and Processing, Physics-Based Deformation, Medical Image Computation, 3D/4D Reconstruction

       

      xguo@utdallas.edu

      Dr. Xianming (Simon) Dai

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 008

       

      Research interests:

      Superhydrophobic Surfaces, Wetting, Nanofabrication, and Thermal Management

       

      Dai@utdallas.edu

       

       

       

      Dr. Zhenpeng Qin

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 009

       

      Research interests:

      Biotransport, Neuro Nanotechnology, Point-of-Care Diagnostics

       

      zhenpeng.qin@utdallas.edu

       

       

       

       

      Dr. Wei Li

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 010

       

      Research interests:

      Additive manufacturing, 3D printing, Onsite repair and remanufacturing with AM process, Fabrication and characterization of customized alloy with multi-materials

       

      wei.li@utdallas.edu

      Dr. Yaqing Jin

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 011

       

      Research interests:

      Fluid mechanics, Renewable energy, Fluid-structure interactions, Turbulent flow, Energy-efficient locomotion

       

      Yaqing.Jin@UTDallas.edu

       

       

      Dr. Fatemeh Hassanipour

      STEM Bridge Program Host

      Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UT Dallas

       

      UTD 012

       

      Research interests:

      Heat Transfer and Fluid Mechanics with Applications in Bioengineering, Health, and Energy Management

       

      fatemeh@utdallas.edu

       

       

    • Announcement from STEM Summer Camp - Apr 3, 2020

      Dear Students and Partners,

       

      Our hearts are with people around the world who have been affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.

       

      CAST-STEM bridge Summer Camp has made the decision to do our part to help prevent the further spreading of this virus by cancelling 2020 summer camp. Our decision is aligned with guidelines from the University that the campus remains closed through out the summer of 2020, and professors continuing to work remotely.

       

      This pandemic has affected everyone’s lives. We thank our professors, students, parents, volunteers, sponsors, and CAST committee members for their support.

       

      We are honored to be part of your lives and support our community's education needs. We look forward to resuming this program again in 2021.

       

      We wish you good health, now and in the future.

       

      Best Regards,

      Angela Chen

      President, CAST-TX

      2020 STEM Summer Camp Program Details - Cancelled

      Registration Process:

       

      Each applicant will choose 3 preferred professors. Each hosting professor will decide which students to accept.

      Depending on the research project to be announced by the hosting professor, additional cost may occur based on the estimated cost of the materials that might be used for the project in the lab or on the equipment.

       

      Important Dates:

      • The application start date is Monday, April 6th, 9:00 am 
      • The applicant end date is Monday, April 13th, 5:00 pm 
      • The acceptance notification date is Monday, April 20th
      • The accepted applicant needs to complete registration by April 27th
      • Program Orientation: Saturday, May 30th , 2:00 pm 
      • The program start date is Monday, June 1st and end on Saturday, July 11th

       

      The program fee: $800, including the following:

      • The program orientation and closing ceremony
      • The lab and equipment access
      • The weekly lunch gathering
      • The awards for STAR trophy winners and certificates
      • The student insurance
      • The program fee is nonrefundable after April 27th

      Program Agenda:

      • Monday to Thursday*:
        • Study   9:00 am – 12:00 pm
        • Lunch  12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
        • Study   1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
      • Friday:
        • Study 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
        • Weekly gathering: 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm (Lunch is provided)
      • Closing Ceremony: Saturday, July 11th 9:00am – 2:00 pm

      * Each study group’s schedule and study agenda is set by the group professor. The professor may conduct the class in the classroom, in the research lab, or visiting research related site.

    • Payment

      $800 for 2020 STEM bridge Summer Camp

    • 2019 STEM bridge Symposium: 20 High School Students Received CAST STAR Awards

      July 13rd, 2019 - CAST-TX held the closing ceremony. 55 students have successfully completed their projects and attended the symposium.
      Students presented their projects with 3 mins of video and 7 mins of presentation. One first prizes, two second prizes and three third prizes were awarded to the teams. The research accomplishments of the students were very impressive and some of research results in progress to be published in journal articles.
      CAST-TX likes to thank all the hosting professors, graduate students, volunteers, students and their parents for collaborative efforts to make the 2019 STEM Bridge a success

    • WINNERS OF 2019 CAST-STAR AWARDS

      Congratulations to the 2019 CAST STAR (Science Tech Academic Researcher) Award Winners!

      First Prize Winners of CAST STAR Award:

      First Prize Winners of CAST STAR Award:

      • Students name: Joshua Chen, James You, Zachary Tian, Daniel Yu
      • Advisor: Latifur Khan, Zhouyi Wang, Saleem Sayeed University of Texas at Dallas | Biggums Data Laboratory
      • Title: Self Driving Cars

      Second Prize Winners of CAST STAR Award:

      • Students name: Ethan Zhao, Isaiah Lambert-Gutierrez, Angelina Xu, Stephen Yang, Angela Liu, Nicholas Tsao

      • Advisors: Prof. Chengkai Li, Dr. Damian Jimenez and Dr. Fatma Arslan at University of Texas at Arlington

      • Title: Macrovoid Formation in Foamed Aerogel through Pressurized Gelation

      • Students name: Selena Yang, Charlotte Ding, Lucy Young, Riley Yuan, Grace Peng
      • Advisor: Dr. Dong Qian, Graduate Assistant: Yingjian Liu, Yang Wang
      • Title: Modeling of Tall Wind Towers​

      Third Prize Winners of CAST STAR Award:

      • Students name: Catherine Wang, Ellen Sun, David Yang, Kevin Wu, Jean Ye
      • Advisor: Dr. Weill Wu (Professor and Lab Director) and Smita Ghosh (Graduate Assistant) Data Communication and Data Management Laboratory

      • Title: Dermatologist-Level Classification of Skin Cancer with Deep Neural Networks

      • Students name: Andrew Cheng, Champers Fu, Annie Tian, Clare Wu, Yingjie Wang
      • Advisor: Dr. Qing Gu, Masoud Alahbakhshi, Abouzar Gharajeh
      • Title: Synthesizing Perovskite Thin Films for Laser Photoluminescence and LED Applications
      • Students name: Vincent Chen, David Li, Berkley Yiu, Ian Zhang, Yikai Zhou

      • Advisor: Dr. Majid Minary

      • Title: 3D Printings of Ceramics and Alloys

       

    • FAQs

      Q1: What is the daily schedule? It is full time or part time summer camp?

      A: The daily schedule is very flexible. It will be discussed and decided between the hosting professor and the family together to work around each other's summer schedule. It can be full day or half day arrangement. As long as the total time put into the project is more than 100 hours in total, it will satisfy the time requirements.

      Q2: What is the suitable grade for the student for this program?

      A: We aim to support a wide range of high school students, from K9 to K12, meaning that students will become K10-K12 in the coming Fall 2020. We will ask the hosting professors to tailor the project goals and tasks to fit the student maturity levels.

      Q3: What about student transportation for the camp?

      A: Parents are required to provide student transportation. The daily schedule can be discussed with hosting professor to work around parents' schedule. For example, students can work for a couple of days at school and then work at home for the rest of the time.

      Q4: How can this project connect with Science Fair competitions?

      A: The project can be a basis for the student to prepare for Science Fair competition. The STEM bridge project can be continued after summer if the hosting professor agrees to support. Such arrangement needs to be discussed with the hosting professor. STEM bridge will provide related science fair information and schedule. For example, Fort Worth Regional Science and Engineering Fair has 17 categories to compete for middle school and high school students. Winners can advance to regional and national competition including prestigeous Intel international competition. More information about science fair is available at: www.fwrsef.org, dallassciencefair.org.

    • Sponsors and Donators

      Donation from student parents

      Chonghui Liu; Zhiyong Li; Li Zhang; Xinxin Sun; Dongjie Huang; Jin Zheng, Lynn Ma; Mei Tong; Yuan Zhang

       

      "Great efforts of CAST for STEM education"

      — Michael Weng, Vlife

       

      ACP Foundation

      Founded in 1993, ACP Foundation (formerly known as the Association of Chinese Professionals, Dallas / Fort Worth) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization registered in the state of Texas.

    • CONTACT US

      Let us know if you have any questions about STEM bridge.

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