UHD is renowned as a “teaching university,” and that teaching often extends way beyond the classroom. UHD’s exceptional faculty can often be found working with students in labs on research, on service projects in the community, or even cultural explorations in other countries.  

The facilitator for all these experiences—bringing professors together with students for high impact practices—is UHD’s Impact Learning Office (ILO), under the direction of Poonam Gulati, Ph.D. The office oversees  

  • Internships/field experiences. 
  • Service learning. 
  • Study abroad. 
  • Undergraduate research. 
  • Capstones. 

“High impact experiences are highly beneficial for students,” said Gulati. “They gain skills, including presentation, critical thinking, teamwork, the ability to navigate in other countries by studying abroad, empathy by working in communities, and job skills via internships. All of these will increase their self-confidence and help them in graduate and professional programs and to obtain jobs.  

Last spring, the ILO hosted the Impact Learning and Community Engagement Showcase, featuring students’ posters outlining their research as well as community engagement and study abroad experiences. The showcase not only highlighted students’ work but also demonstrated the impact of faculty as mentors. “Faculty can offer service learning or study abroad trips in their courses and encourage students to conduct research and seek internships,” said Gulati. 

Here’s just a sampling of projects at the showcase:  

“A Retrospective Analysis: COVID-19’s Impact on the Houston Community in 2020” By Nethra Kippip, Patricia Amador, and Yuliana Sants with mentor Mesias Pedroza, Ph.D. 

In 2020, amid the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of UHD students conducted a survey to determine the impact on local communities and collected 1,056 responses. Pictured left to right: Mesias Pedroza, Ph.D.; Nethra Kippip, Patricia Amador, and Yuliana Sants 

Mesias Pedroza, Ph.D.; Nethra Kippip, Patricia Amador, and Yuliana Sants stand aside a research poster on the covid-19 pandemic

“Helping Robots to Find the Best Path” by Kibru Menore with mentor Azadeh Izadi, Ph.D. 

With the support of Dr. Azadeh Izadi, this research project helped Menore learn how to debug complex algorithms effectively. He also learned “soft” skills like the power of collaboration, how to ask for help when stuck, and perseverance through problem-solving. He’s gained the confidence to pursue his future goal of working in AI-based companies like Tesla, OpenAI, and NVIDIA. Pictured left to right: Dr. Hong Lin, Kibru Menore, Sam Holden. 

Hong Lin stands aside a research presentation poster with Kibru Menore and Sam Holden on University of Houston-Downtown's south deck

“AP Statistics Analysis for College Admission” by Thomas Duong with mentor Timothy Redl, Ph.D.  

For his research project, Thomas Duong analyzed data from multiple sources to determine if UHD should offer credit for AP statistics. Read more about his recommendation to UHD.  

Timothy Redl stands aside a senior research post for the impact learning and community engagement showcase. Thomas Duong points to their poster.

For more information, visit the Impact Learning Office page.