From developing futuristic packaging that guards food freshness and safety, to improving speech therapy for neurodiverse people, to developing novel sea ice monitoring techniques, were awarded through a new 乐播传媒 of Maryland seed grant program, totaling about $1.5 million. Among these, three projects include faculty from the College of Education.
The grants are administered by the (AIM), a collaborative hub that the university launched last spring to conduct research, offer innovative and experiential learning opportunities for students, and focus on responsible and ethical AI technology to advance the public good.
"This year鈥檚 AIM research seed awards fund bold, interdisciplinary projects that embody the institute鈥檚 mission: to advance innovative artificial intelligence research through our four pillars of accessibility, social justice, sustainability and learning,鈥 said Sheena Erete, AIM associate director of research and College of Information associate professor. 鈥淲e are proud to support scholars who are expanding what鈥檚 possible through thoughtful, inclusive and impactful research.鈥
The grants were awarded in several categories, with funding from AIM and matching funds from campus units. College of Education faculty are involved in the following projects:
Cross-College Collaborative Awards ($100,000-$300,000)
AI-Driven Development of Neurodiversity Affirming Practices for Teachers and Clinicians (ADAPT)
For this community-based grant, Counseling, Higher Education and Special Education Assistant Professor Veronica Kang; Hearing and Speech Sciences Assistant Professor Jos茅 Ortiz; and Psychology Assistant Research Professor Heather Yarger will collaborate with Kate Lu, clinical director and parent representative at the Chinese Culture and Community Service Center Health Clinic, and Ariel La, a speech language pathologist at Speech Gardens, to train 乐播传媒 students to use the TerpAI chatbot in conjunction with ADAPT. This checklist for neurodiversity-affirming and culturally sustaining instruction supports emotion regulation, executive functioning, communication, and social and play skills for culturally diverse autistic youths in Maryland and Virginia.
Co-Learning Code and Mind: Integrating AI With Transformative Social and Emotional Learning for Diverse Youth Through Tangible Robotics
For this community-based grant, Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education Associate Professor Chunyan Yang and Computer Science and UMIACS Assistant Professor Huaishu Peng plan to engage middle school students alongside their neurodiverse peers in the hands-on co-designing, co-building and co-programming of robots. They will partner with two nonprofit organizations in Montgomery County for this project: the AOE Robotics Club and the Special Education Equal Development Society.
Individual Faculty Awards ($5,000-$20,000)
Project MELD: AI-Driven Scaffolding for Scientific and Civic Reasoning
Human Development and Quantitative Methodology Professor Doug Lombardi plans to develop and test an AI-driven instructional tool that deepens scientific and civic reasoning in K-12 education. The tool will help students critically evaluate complex scientific issues and support teachers in fostering deeper learning, critical thinking and analytical reasoning.
This was adapted from a .
