Education (Colleges & Universities)
Here's a look at documents from public, private and community colleges in the U.S.
Featured Stories
Faculty Friday: Miriam Ragland
CLINTON, South Carolina, March 13 -- Presbyterian College posted the following news:
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Faculty Friday: Miriam Ragland
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Presbyterian College theatre professor shares excitement about strengthening the performing arts program to better support students
The performing arts have been a lifelong passion for professor of theatre Miriam Ragland, who grew up dancing until a broken ankle put an end to her ballet career.
Ragland wasn't stopped by her injury, though. Still feeling called to perform, she auditioned for a play in her senior year of high school, where she fell in love with theatre
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CLINTON, South Carolina, March 13 -- Presbyterian College posted the following news:
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Faculty Friday: Miriam Ragland
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Presbyterian College theatre professor shares excitement about strengthening the performing arts program to better support students
The performing arts have been a lifelong passion for professor of theatre Miriam Ragland, who grew up dancing until a broken ankle put an end to her ballet career.
Ragland wasn't stopped by her injury, though. Still feeling called to perform, she auditioned for a play in her senior year of high school, where she fell in love with theatreand everything it had to offer.
Following her heart
Ragland's first introduction to being an educator was her master's program in directing, which heavily revolved around teaching and instructing.
"I have an MFA in directing, and it was very focused on teaching. I had a teaching assistantship as part of it as well," she said. "That's when I realized that my place was in the classroom."
On the tail end of a year-long stint in Seattle as a freelance artist, Ragland came to the realization that freelancing wasn't what her heart desired - teaching was.
From that moment forward, she began applying to positions all over the country, including at Presbyterian College, which she came to visit after being extended an offer.
Despite being on the other side of the country, the campus immediately felt like home.
"I came and visited campus, and I just fell in love," she said.
Since then, Ragland has been at the college for 24 years, teaching classes such as Introduction to Theatre, Theatre for Social Change, and African American Theatre.
It's exciting for all of us to come together as one artistic unit, and to work together to make the performing arts at PC stronger than it's ever been."
Miriam Ragland, Professor of Theatre
Looking into the future
Recently, Ragland's passion project has been refurbishing the black box theatre that's been sitting unused in Harper Arts Center for several years, a stepping stone to rebuilding the theatre program as a whole.
Another stepping stone has been PC's partnership with Laurens County Community Theatre, who will be performing a show every spring, with PC performing a show every fall.
Ragland and her colleagues couldn't be more excited about building the arts program at Presbyterian College, having combined art, music, and theatre to become the Department of Visual and Performing Arts.
"It's exciting for all of us to come together as one artistic unit, and to work together to make the performing arts at PC stronger than it's ever been," she said.
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Original text here: https://www.presby.edu/faculty-friday-miriam-ragland/
University of Texas Dallas: Heavy Water Expands Energy Potential of Carbon Nanotube Yarns
RICHARDSON, Texas, March 12 (TNSjou) -- The University of Texas Dallas campus issued the following news:
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Heavy Water Expands Energy Potential of Carbon Nanotube Yarns
By Amanda Siegfried
Chemistry doctoral student Ishara Ekanayake (left), Dr. Mengmeng Zhang, a research assistant professor and co-lead of the Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute at UT Dallas, and their colleagues developed a new electrolyte system that significantly boosts the energy-harvesting performance of twistrons, which are yarns made from carbon nanotubes. Zhang holds a model of a carbon nanotube.
Researchers at
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RICHARDSON, Texas, March 12 (TNSjou) -- The University of Texas Dallas campus issued the following news:
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Heavy Water Expands Energy Potential of Carbon Nanotube Yarns
By Amanda Siegfried
Chemistry doctoral student Ishara Ekanayake (left), Dr. Mengmeng Zhang, a research assistant professor and co-lead of the Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute at UT Dallas, and their colleagues developed a new electrolyte system that significantly boosts the energy-harvesting performance of twistrons, which are yarns made from carbon nanotubes. Zhang holds a model of a carbon nanotube.
Researchers atThe University of Texas at Dallas have developed a new electrolyte system that significantly boosts the energy-harvesting performance of twistrons, which are carbon nanotube yarns that generate electricity when repeatedly stretched.
The findings could aid in the manufacturing of intelligent textiles, such as fabrics used to make spacesuits, that would power wearable electronic devices or sensors by harvesting energy from human motion.
In a study published in the Feb. 24 print edition of ACS Nano, the UT Dallas scientists and their collaborators reported that replacing conventional water with heavy water in the neutral electrolyte solution that bathes the twistrons significantly increased energy output from the yarns.
Normal water comprises hydrogen and oxygen atoms. In heavy water, the hydrogen is replaced with deuterium, a form of hydrogen that contains an added neutron in its nucleus.
Compared to normal water, the heavy water based system delivered up to 2.5 times higher peak electrical power and 1.8 times more energy per stretching cycle at low frequencies, between 0.01 hertz (cycles per second) and 2 hertz. The energy conversion efficiency reached 9.5%, which is higher than any other previously reported twistron harvester operating in neutral electrolytes, said Dr. Mengmeng Zhang, corresponding author of the study and a research assistant professor and co-lead of the Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute.
"Although this research focuses primarily on enhancing low-frequency energy harvesting -- for example, from human movement or ocean waves -- these deuterium-enhanced twistron harvesters also exhibit remarkable harvesting performance at high frequencies, from 2 hertz to 50 hertz," Zhang said. "Potential higher-frequency uses might include harvesting electricity from rotating car wheels."
Twistrons are spun yarns made from carbon nanotubes, hollow cylinders of carbon 10,000 times smaller in diameter than a human hair. Originally developed by a UT Dallas-led team and described in 2017 in the journal Science, twistrons were developed subsequently as three ply carbon nanotube yarns similar in structure to common textile fibers, which enables them to be integrated easily into fabrics.
Twistron performance is typically maximized when the twistrons are covered by strong acid electrolytes, but the corrosive nature of acid limits the fibers' use in wearable or environmentally sensitive systems. Neutral water-based electrolyte solutions offer a safer alternative, but they are not as efficient.
"Our new heavy water based electrolyte system overcomes this challenge, providing a noncorrosive option that maintains high performance, particularly in low frequency environments such as human activity," said Ishara Ekanayake, co-first author of the study and a chemistry doctoral student in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (NSM).
"Using heavy water slows the movement of charged molecules and reduces or minimizes the self-discharging rate, so we can keep more charges on the carbon nanotubes. For energy harvesting, that's a big benefit -- more charges lead to better harvesting performance," Ekanayake said.
To demonstrate practical use, the researchers embedded a twistron yarn array covered in a solid electrolyte gel into a commercial textile and stretched the material to simulate energy harvesting from human motion. The captured energy successfully powered wearable electronic devices.
"We can envision next generation wearable fabrics capable of continuously generating electricity from everyday movement to power phones, watches, tablets, laptops and other portable electronics," Zhang said.
The team also demonstrated thermal energy harvesting by coupling electrolyte-coated twistron yarns to a polymer based artificial muscle that contracts when heated. As the muscle contracted, it stretched the twistron yarn to produce electricity, showing the technology's potential for applications that involve environmental temperature changes.
The next step in the research will include identifying ways to optimize the deuterium-based electrolyte system.
Other UT Dallas researchers involved in the work are co-first author Dr. Wenting Cai, who was a visiting scientist from Texas State University; Dr. Shaoli Fang, co-corresponding author and associate research professor in the NanoTech Institute; Dr. Anvar Zakhidov, deputy director of the institute and professor of physics; Dr. Ali Aliev, research professor in the institute; Ashutosh Shrivastava PhD'25, postdoctoral researcher; Dr. Mihaela Stefan, professor and department head of chemistry and biochemistry; Dr. Michael Biewer, NSM associate dean of undergraduate education and professor of chemistry; and Dr. Ray Baughman, former director of the institute who died in 2025. Other authors are from Lintec of America Inc., and Huazhong University of Science and Technology.
The research was supported by the Office of Naval Research (grants ONR/STTR N68335-18-C-0368, ONR N00014-22-1-2569 and ONR N00014-23-1-2183) and The Welch Foundation.
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Original text here: https://news.utdallas.edu/science-technology/heavy-water-carbon-nanotubes-2026/
SUNY Chancellor King Announces the Winners of the 2026 Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award
ALBANY, New York, March 12 -- The State University of New York issued the following news release:
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SUNY Chancellor King Announces the Winners of the 2026 Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award
First-Place Winners are Jiameng Lai of the New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell and Mairui Zhang of SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
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State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced this year's winners of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award. This honor celebrates the best PhD dissertations that address critical
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ALBANY, New York, March 12 -- The State University of New York issued the following news release:
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SUNY Chancellor King Announces the Winners of the 2026 Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award
First-Place Winners are Jiameng Lai of the New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell and Mairui Zhang of SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
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State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced this year's winners of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award. This honor celebrates the best PhD dissertations that address criticalissues in our society and were authored by the next generation of innovators and researchers across the SUNY system.
"The annual Distinguished PhD Dissertation Awards exemplify SUNY's commitment to research and scholarship - one of our four driving pillars. Across SUNY, our PhD students use academic research as a tool to address important issues and make the world a better place," said SUNY Chancellor King. "This goes to the heart of SUNY's commitment to academic excellence as a vehicle for meaningful change. Congratulations to Jiameng Lai and Mairui Zhang and all of this year's remarkable honorees."
SUNY Trustee Courtney Burke, Chair of the Research and Economic Development Committee, said, "Throughout the state our campuses engage in cutting-edge research with our extraordinary students at the forefront. We are happy to have this opportunity to congratulate the recipients of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award not only for their award-winning dissertations, but also for their hard work and dedication to their fields of study."
The winners of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award:
* Jiameng Lai, New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell - "Understanding terrestrial carbon and water exchanges through carbonyl sulfide (OCS) and carbon-13 isotope." Jiameng Lai's dissertation establishes a transformative modeling framework that bridges plant physiology, climate modeling, and satellite remote sensing. Her research resolves critical uncertainties at the nexus of the terrestrial carbon-water cycles, providing the foundational insights necessary to enhance the credibility of global carbon budgets and inform sustainable development in the world's most vulnerable ecosystems.
* MairuiZhang, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry - "Upcycling of Lignocellulosic Wastes to Value-Added Porous Materials." This work explores how agricultural and forestry byproducts can be transformed into valuable materials instead of being discarded or burned. By understanding the properties and interactions of these natural components, greener fuels, chemicals, and materials can be designed and produced that maintain strong performance while reducing environmental impact.
Jiameng Lai said, "Conducting research is challenging and exhausting, but the moment when the work receives attention and recognition makes every effort worthwhile. This award gives me the courage to pursue even more ambitious work as a postdoc."
Cornell University Graduate School Dean Thomas A. Lewis said, "Jiameng's groundbreaking work exemplifies the best of Cornell scholarship. Her recognition with the SUNY Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award is a remarkable achievement and a testament to her dedication and vision. We're extremely proud of her contributions and excited to see where her research leads in her future career."
Mairui Zhang said, "Receiving the SUNY Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award is a tremendous honor. Personally, it represents a meaningful milestone that reflects years of dedication and the exceptional mentorship and support I received at SUNY ESF. For my work, it affirms the importance of advancing a circular bioeconomy by transforming biomass byproducts into valuable, sustainable materials. It is encouraging to see my research recognized in this way, and it strengthens my commitment to developing practical, scalable solutions that valorize biomass and reduce reliance on petroleum-based chemicals. This foundation continues to guide my efforts in industry today."
SUNY ESF President Joanie Mahoney said, "The work of our PhD students is what validates our Carnegie R2 ranking, and we couldn't be prouder of Dr. Zhang for this incredible accolade. It's not an easy task to wade through the challenges of recycling and upcycling, but Dr. Zhang has done incredible work, and we celebrate him and his invaluable contribution to science."
Finalists:
* Andrew Lindquist, State University of New York at Buffalo, "(Re)Imagining Community: Settler Anxiety, Ethnographic Desire, and Haudenosaunee Nationalisms in the Assimilation Era"
* Maurice Petroccione, State University of New York at Albany, "The multifaceted role of glutamate at excitatory and inhibitory synapses"
Honorable mentions:
* Rachel Furhang, SUNY Downstate Medical, "The Role of Tau Isoforms in Sub-Acute and Chronic Closed Head Injury"
* Brian Keeling, State University of New York at Binghamton, "The Biomechanical Nature of the Human Mandible"
* Harsimranjit Sekhon, SUNY Upstate Medical, "Engineering Generalized Protein-Based Biosensors for Molecular Detection and Clinical Applications"
* Shuting Xiang, State University of New York at Stony Brook, "Understanding Structure-Function Relationships in Single-Atom Catalysts for CO2 and CO Conversion"
Each dissertation, along with supporting materials, was evaluated by SUNY faculty with expertise in the dissertation field and by a System Administration committee. All honorees will receive a certificate and professional development funds to support their scholarship and research.
Annually, SUNY graduates approximately 1,300 PhD students from its nine doctoral-granting campuses. Across SUNY, PhD students conduct groundbreaking research in fields ranging from engineering to English. Each year, the nine PhD-granting institutions are invited to submit a nomination portfolio for the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award.
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About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY's 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country's oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in four New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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Original text here: https://www.suny.edu/suny-news/press-releases/3-26/3-11-26/phd.html
Renowned Environmental Author Terry Tempest Williams Visits Gonzaga April 7
SPOKANE, Washington, March 12 -- Gonzaga University issued the following news:
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Renowned Environmental Author Terry Tempest Williams Visits Gonzaga April 7
Terry Tempest Williams, one of the nation's most celebrated voices on nature, justice, and the human spirit, will visit Spokane on Tuesday, April 7, at 4 p.m. for a special event hosted by the Gonzaga Institute for Climate, Water, and the Environment in partnership with the Gonzaga Visiting Writer Series. The program, held in the ballroom of Gonzaga University's Hemmingson Center, is free and open to the public, and will also be accessible
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SPOKANE, Washington, March 12 -- Gonzaga University issued the following news:
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Renowned Environmental Author Terry Tempest Williams Visits Gonzaga April 7
Terry Tempest Williams, one of the nation's most celebrated voices on nature, justice, and the human spirit, will visit Spokane on Tuesday, April 7, at 4 p.m. for a special event hosted by the Gonzaga Institute for Climate, Water, and the Environment in partnership with the Gonzaga Visiting Writer Series. The program, held in the ballroom of Gonzaga University's Hemmingson Center, is free and open to the public, and will also be accessiblevia livestream.
The gathering invites community members into an evening of conversation, reflection, and shared inquiry. Williams -- an award winning author, environmentalist, activist, and current writer in residence at Harvard Divinity School -- will offer a short reading before engaging in an interview and moderated discussion.
Together with the audience, she will explore climate change as a moral and social justice issue; the role of imagination and creativity in ecological restoration; the art and craft of writing and reading well; and how environmental stewardship connects to human dignity and global solidarity.
Brian G. Henning, director of the Gonzaga Climate Institute, notes that Williams' voice is particularly resonant at this moment.
"The Climate Institute's 'For Our Common Home' lecture series hosts prominent speakers who help us understand different aspects of the complex nature of the climate crisis," says Henning, director of Gonzaga's Climate Institute. "We are honored to host the renowned writer Terry Tempest Williams, who is known for her exceptional ability to blend deeply personal memoir with ecological advocacy. She helps us better understand what it is to be human on a planet in crisis."
Williams is widely known for her ability to illuminate the intimate connections between land, people, and story. Her books, including "Refuge" and "Erosion," have shaped national conversations on ecology and public lands, while her essays for The New Yorker, The New York Times, and Orion have established her as a leading figure in environmental thought. Her career has brought her before Congress, into collaborations with artists and scientists, and to major honors such as the John Muir Award and the Thoreau Prize, each recognizing her lifelong commitment to environmental justice and freedom of speech.
John Eliason, interim director of Gonzaga's Visiting Writer Series, says bringing Williams to Gonzaga represents more than a literary highlight -- it is an invitation to deeper attentiveness and care.
"Terry Tempest Williams is a public artist and intellectual who has dedicated her life to challenging the notion that any gap exists between humans and the world around them," Eliason says. "Her work emphasizes the intimate, inextricable connections between people and place, thoughtfully excavating the very idea of nature. She approaches the world with a sensitive yet rigorous disposition toward questioning, and seeing her model that curiosity makes engaging with her in person a worthy pursuit."
Eliason notes that this collaboration between the Visiting Writer Series and the Climate Institute reflects shared commitments at the heart of Gonzaga's mission.
"The Climate Institute and the Visiting Writers Series are both dedicated to learning and living well," he said. "While the two organizations have different areas of focus, both align deeply with Gonzaga's mission. This collaboration is especially fitting for this event, as the beautiful and erudite writing of Terry Tempest Williams has the capacity to inspire students and community members alike. I believe they will leave with new ways of caring as they navigate their own paths toward vibrant, sustainable lives."
"A Conversation with Terry Tempest Williams" will take place Tuesday, April 7, at 4 p.m. in Hemmingson Ballroom on the Gonzaga University campus. The event is free and open to the public; registration is requested but not required for attendance.
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Original text here: https://www.gonzaga.edu/news-events/stories/2026/3/11/gonzaga-welcomes-renowned-environmental-author-terry-tempest-williams-april-7
Penn State Scranton Celebrates Women's History Month
DUNMORE, Pennsylvania, March 12 -- Pennsylvania State University's Scranton campus issued the following news:
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Penn State Scranton celebrates Women's History Month
By Rebekah Howells
March is Women's History Month and to commemorate it Penn State Scranton Library Operations Supervisor Mary Ann Joyce created a special display in the library celebrating women throughout history.
The display features books such as "Babe Didrikson Zaharias, The Making of a Champion," which is about one of the most famous women athletes in history.
"She was an All-American basketball player, an Olympic gold
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DUNMORE, Pennsylvania, March 12 -- Pennsylvania State University's Scranton campus issued the following news:
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Penn State Scranton celebrates Women's History Month
By Rebekah Howells
March is Women's History Month and to commemorate it Penn State Scranton Library Operations Supervisor Mary Ann Joyce created a special display in the library celebrating women throughout history.
The display features books such as "Babe Didrikson Zaharias, The Making of a Champion," which is about one of the most famous women athletes in history.
"She was an All-American basketball player, an Olympic goldmedalist in track and field, and a championship golfer," Joyce explained.
Another featured book is "The Girls Who Stepped Out of Line," about women who changed the course of World War II and mostly went unnoticed and unrewarded. Other books on display are "The Personal Librarian" and "She Said."
When asked about her process in creating the display, which includes a beaded necklace and different women's hats of the past, Joyce said she first gathered books and movies that seemed interesting. She then separated them into groups such as "Women in Politics," "Women Pushing the Boundaries" and "Women's Firsts." She also ordered a game titled "Forty Famous Women" and used different pieces from that such as black and white photo cards and different questions from the game.
At the very top of the display are timelines of women throughout history which Joyce said she feels are fun to browse -- she strongly encourages campus students and employees to do. The display will be ongoing through the end of the month.
Another way the campus community celebrated Women's History Month was through a women's history trivia event organized by the Student Government Association (SGA) and hosted by SGA President Gavan Quimby. Using the game-based platform Kahoot, participants competed by answering a variety of questions focused on women and women's history with the five students getting the most correct answers winning prizes.
And, in the March issue of Happenings Magazine, a regional lifestyle monthly publication, four of the campus' English faculty members were featured in an article discussing the significance of women in literature and culture and why it is important for students today to continue to study women in literature.
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Original text here: https://scranton.psu.edu/story/29406/2026/03/10/penn-state-scranton-celebrates-womens-history-month
N.C. State: How System Could Help the Remote Drivers Who Operate 'Driverless' Cars
RALEIGH, North Carolina, March 12 (TNSjou) -- North Carolina State University issued the following news release:
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How a New System Could Help the Remote Drivers Who Operate 'Driverless' Cars
So-called "driverless" cars often have human operators remotely controlling the vehicles to help navigate tricky driving situations and avoid accidents. But this setup poses a number of challenges. How do you ensure the operators stay alert? And what happens when operators are asked to monitor multiple vehicles at once, particularly in dynamic environments? Researchers are proposing a new approach to
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RALEIGH, North Carolina, March 12 (TNSjou) -- North Carolina State University issued the following news release:
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How a New System Could Help the Remote Drivers Who Operate 'Driverless' Cars
So-called "driverless" cars often have human operators remotely controlling the vehicles to help navigate tricky driving situations and avoid accidents. But this setup poses a number of challenges. How do you ensure the operators stay alert? And what happens when operators are asked to monitor multiple vehicles at once, particularly in dynamic environments? Researchers are proposing a new approach tothis remote-operation system that addresses these concerns and could serve as a blueprint for the future of remotely operated vehicles.
"There are automobiles that are largely autonomous but that actually have remote human operators who provide guidance or assistance when a vehicle encounters a complex scenario," says Jing Feng, a professor of human factors psychology at NC State whose work focuses on human attention, driver behavior and transportation safety. "The goal here is to ensure that the vehicle navigates the situation successfully, mitigating any risk of harm to passengers, other vehicles, and so on. Recent news stories suggest that Waymo taxis are an example of this.
"However, these systems face three connected challenges: maintaining vigilance, ensuring operators are not tasked with overseeing more vehicles than they can handle, and ensuring timely intervention by operators in dynamic environments," Feng says. "And these challenges are not purely academic thought exercises. They are important considerations for an emerging industry, and the regulators who are tasked with overseeing that industry.
"We are proposing a new approach to these remote-operation systems that can help address those challenges," adds Feng, who is corresponding author of a paper that describes the proposed approach.
Defining Remote Operation Challenges
Maintaining vigilance is a challenge for remote operators because when things are going smoothly, there is little need for intervention and it becomes boring.
"This is important because if a person becomes disengaged, and is no longer alert, they are going to miss things that are happening which they need to respond to," says Feng.
The second challenge is about managing cognitive workload - you don't want the remote operator to become overwhelmed.
"For example, research shows that remote operators can monitor two vehicles very well, but their performance declines significantly when asked to monitor four vehicles - it's simply too mentally taxing," says Feng. "There are also issues related to which vehicles an operator is asked to monitor. For example, if a remote operator is asked to monitor two vehicles that are in close proximity to each other, this can increase the likelihood of an accident if both vehicles experience an unexpected event at the same time - such as a third vehicle behaving erratically."
And challenges associated with maintaining vigilance and managing cognitive workload can be exacerbated when vehicles are in dynamic environments - such as highways or city streets.
"If people are disengaged, or if people are overwhelmed by monitoring too many vehicles, it becomes more difficult to respond to unexpected situations in a timely way," says Feng.
A Proactive Approach to Remote Operation
Current remote-operation systems largely take a reactive approach, meaning human operators generally don't intervene in the operation of a vehicle until the autonomous system sends a prompt that alerts them to a problem.
"We are proposing a proactive approach to remote operation," says Feng. "This would give remote operators more system information, and would also require closer monitoring, but would allow operators to better anticipate problems. This approach should improve an operator's situational awareness leading to faster response times and less likelihood that the operator will make a bad decision.
"Our proposed approach draws on extensive research into maintaining alertness, situational awareness, the behavior of conventional drivers and the behavior of drivers who are operating semi-autonomous vehicles. The next step is to put our approach to the test, ideally using remote operators overseeing multiple vehicles in simulations or controlled environments.
"There are a host of research questions to explore here," says Feng. "How many vehicles can an operator monitor safely? How long can an operator's shift be before they lose focus? What information is necessary to maximize situational awareness and anticipation? It's an exciting research area.
"We're currently exploring some of these research questions with funding from the North Carolina Department of Transportation, to better understand policy and regulatory approaches related to the remote operation of robotaxis," Feng says.
The paper, "Proactive Remote Operation of Automated Vehicles: Supporting Human Controllability," is a chapter in the recently published Handbook of Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. The paper was co-authored by Xiaolu Bai, a Ph.D. graduate from NC State; Yunan Liu, an associate professor in NC State's Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering; and Chris Cunningham, associate director of NC State's Institute for Transportation Research and Education.
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Original text here: https://news.ncsu.edu/2026/03/remote-drivers-of-driverless-cars/
FAU: AR Job Coaching Boosts Performance by 79% for People With Disabilities
BOCA RATON, Florida, March 12 (TNSjou) -- Florida Atlantic University, a component of the state university system in Florida, issued the following news:
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AR Job Coaching Boosts Performance by 79% for People With Disabilities
Study Snapshot: Employment offers a pathway to independence, dignity and social connection, yet for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), access remains limited. Despite the well-documented benefits of work and federal efforts such as supported and customized employment, only about 15% of individuals with IDD are employed in competitive,
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BOCA RATON, Florida, March 12 (TNSjou) -- Florida Atlantic University, a component of the state university system in Florida, issued the following news:
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AR Job Coaching Boosts Performance by 79% for People With Disabilities
Study Snapshot: Employment offers a pathway to independence, dignity and social connection, yet for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), access remains limited. Despite the well-documented benefits of work and federal efforts such as supported and customized employment, only about 15% of individuals with IDD are employed in competitive,integrated settings. Persistent barriers including inconsistent job coaching, high staff turnover, and challenges navigating workplace expectations continue to undermine long-term employment success.
To address these gaps, FAU researchers explored whether augmented reality (AR) could serve as an effective job coach. In the study, participants initially completed just 14% of job task steps correctly without AR support. With the AR intervention, average task accuracy rose to 93%, with some participants achieving 100%, and all reached mastery by completing at least 90% of steps independently across multiple sessions. Notably, participants achieved at least 75% accuracy and independence after only a 15-minute AR-supported job training session - compared to the two to four months typically required with traditional job coaching - demonstrating AR's potential to dramatically improve training efficiency and expand access to meaningful, competitive employment for individuals with IDD.
By Gisele Galoustian
Employment can be a powerful gateway to independence, dignity and belonging. Yet for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), that gateway remains limited. Although work supports better health, social connection and a sense of purpose, only about 15% of individuals with IDD are employed in competitive, integrated work settings.
This disparity persists despite federal programs like supported employment, which offers ongoing job coaching to help people with significant disabilities find and keep competitive jobs, and customized employment, which adapts job roles to match the strengths and needs of both employees and employers. This highlights a critical gap in research and practice. High turnover among job coaches, inconsistent support and ongoing social and environmental challenges, such as navigating workplace expectations and interacting with coworkers, continue to limit long-term job retention and success.
To address these barriers, Florida Atlantic University researchers explored the potential of using augmented reality (AR) as a job coaching tool to improve job training and workforce opportunities for individuals with IDD. The study examined a novel AR-based application designed to function as a job coach, delivering real-time, context-specific guidance to support the completion of complex job tasks.
The study tested how well an AR-based job coach could help people with IDD improve their performance and work more independently. For the study, participants worked as library assistants and practiced shelving books. Researchers specifically chose this job because it demands complex skills like reading, listening and critical thinking - abilities that are often viewed as challenging for individuals with IDD when performing job tasks. The research aimed to see if AR technology could help individuals perform these complex tasks.
The results were striking. During the baseline phase, participants demonstrated consistently low performance, completing an average of just 14% of task steps correctly, highlighting the difficulty of the vocational task without additional support. When the AR intervention was introduced, performance improved immediately and dramatically. Average task accuracy increased to 93%, with some participants reaching 100%, and all met mastery criteria by completing at least 90% of task steps correctly and independently across four consecutive sessions.
Published in the journal Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, the findings underscore the transformative potential of AR as a job coach. By delivering real-time, context-specific guidance, the AR application enabled participants to perform complex job tasks with minimal external support, significantly increasing training efficiency.
Notably, participants reached at least 75% accuracy and independence after just a 15-minute AR-supported training session - a process that typically takes two to four months with traditional job coaching.
"Our findings show that augmented reality can dramatically accelerate job training for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities by breaking complex tasks into manageable, real-time supports," said Ayse Torres, Ph.D., senior author and an associate professor in counselor education in FAU's College of Education, and an associate professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering within FAU's College of Engineering and Computer Science. "While technology is rapidly reshaping the workforce, AR offers a promising way to ensure individuals with disabilities are not left behind - but instead are empowered to succeed in meaningful, competitive employment."
The study suggests that AR could offer a cost-effective, scalable alternative to traditional job coaching in supported employment programs for individuals with IDD. While AR requires an initial investment, its ability to deliver real-time guidance, reduce ongoing one-on-one support, and scale to many users with minimal added cost positions it as a financially sustainable solution.
"What makes this approach especially exciting is its sustainability," said Torres. "If we can use technology to help people work more independently while allowing programs to stretch their resources further, we create a system that benefits individuals, employers and service providers alike."
Study co-authors are Kelly B. Kearney, Ed.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Special Education, FAU College of Education; Alexandro Galvez-Vega, a graduate assistant in FAU's College of Engineering and Computer Science; Dariush Hassan, a software engineer in FAU's Sensing Institute (ISENSE); Mahesh Neelakanta, director of information technology services, FAU University Libraries; and Hari Kalva, Ph.D., chair and professor, FAU Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
This research was supported by the Switzer Research Fellowship awarded to Torres by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. Additional support for this research was provided by the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, Northwestern University, through the C-STAR Collaborative Mentorship Funding.
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Original text here: https://www.fau.edu/newsdesk/articles/augmented-reality-job-performance.php
