News

On Tuesday, May 26, PREM CIMA welcomed 51 eighth- and ninth-grade students from CAST Med High School to Texas State University for a day of hands-on STEM exploration and college pathway learning.

One of the most useful and successful activities for the student in PEAQS has been working one-on-one with PEAQS staff on their career preparation. To create a sustainable version of this, Dr. Schreiner developed an on-demand online training platform for PEAQS students.

To better study diseases, scientists are turning to organ-on-a-chip models that allow them to create multiple bio-accurate disease models without needing animal or human subjects. FLC undergraduates Sally Thompson, Hunter Goggin, Natalia Lambos from the Jessing group at FLC have been working to create a lung-on-a-chip platform for this purpose.

Wayant Billey, a Navajo student at Navajo Technical University, knows firsthand how important water quality is for families who haul water for drinking, livestock and crops. His research uses small, low-cost laser-induced graphene sensors to detect heavy metals in water — work that could help communities better understand local contamination risks while inspiring the next generation of STEM students.

This month, the PREM CIMA community led two outreach events aimed at bringing STEM learning to children and families across San Marcos.

Students moved from room to room inside Gardiner Hall, stopping to test experiments, ask questions, and watch demonstrations during New Mexico State University’s Physics Fun Day. Held Friday, March 27, the event turned abstract concepts into something tangible.

On Friday, March 27, 24 PREM CIMA students proudly presented their innovative research at the 2026 TXST STEM Conference at Texas State University. The annual conference brings together students, researchers, educators, and industry leaders to highlight STEM discovery, collaboration, and innovation across Texas.

The recognition highlights the role of the NSF PREM CIMA, in supporting undergraduate research and helping strengthen the pipeline of students entering materials science and STEM careers.

Students from TxState-UT PREM Center for Intelligent Materials Assembly (CIMA) recently received honors for research excellence and poster presentations at regional and national meetings, highlighting innovation, mentorship, and collaboration.

Olivia Downey, a senior Chemistry major at Xavier University of Louisiana and a student researcher in the Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) program, is making history as one of only six undergraduate students selected nationwide to speak at the ACS Presidential Symposium, “The Next 150 Years of Undergraduate Research,” during the Spring 2026 American Chemical Society meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.