The Donaghey College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (DCSTEM) is proud to support and partner with numerous centers and programs.
STEM Education Center
The UA Little Rock STEM Education Center is a vehicle to coordinate and connect activities across the campus with partners in K-12 schools and others interested in STEM. Supporting faculty, staff, and students who focus on STEM, the partnership sponsors events and activities to bring interested parties together and to feature best practices and innovations developed across the country in STEM Education.
DCSTEM Affiliated Centers
COSMOS
COSMOS is at the vanguard of the ever-evolving field of social computing that brings together an interdisciplinary team of researchers from over 15 countries. Founded in 2015, COSMOS is developing big ‘social’ data analytical tools to understand digital behaviors and forecast trends to achieve social good.
COSMOS Research Center studies the good, bad, and ugly aspects of our cyber social behaviors, including social movements, campaigns raising awareness about social issues, information and influence operations, mis/disinformation campaigns, computational and AI-based propaganda tactics, algorithmic warfare, elections, conflicts/wars, terrorism, and the rise of violent extremism in different regions of the world, specifically Canada, Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific region. To further our mission to bridge science, society, and policy through technology and innovation, the research conducted at COSMOS is transitioned to usable software tools, recognized internationally by NATO and WHO, and at home by the U.S. Department of State’s Global Engagement Center and Arkansas Office of the Attorney General.
Research at COSMOS has made foundational contributions to social network analysis, (deviant) behavior modeling, combatting socio-cognitive threats, group dynamics, influence, trust, collective action, social-cyber forensics, computational narratology, smart health, data mining, and privacy. Aiming to strengthen our socio-cognitive security apparatus and help build community resiliency, these multi-year, multi-domain, and multicultural studies are supported by grants with a total funding of over $25 million from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), U.S. Army Research Office (ARO), U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR), U.S. Air Force Research Lab (AFRL), and U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
George W. Donaghey Emerging Analytics Center™ (EAC)
The Donaghey Emerging Analytics Center has a focus on research and development in immersive
visualization, augmented/virtual/mixed realities, and interactive technologies in general. The EAC is further including in its portfolio research in cybersecurity, mobile/ubiquitous computing, and the internet-of-things as well as applications of machine and deep learning. The EAC is collaborating very closely with the Department of Computer Science in DCSTEM at UA Little Rock, where the computer-science department is the prime talent pool for the EAC while the EAC offers wide-ranging opportunities for our students in professional software development as well as academic and industry-related research.
DCSTEM Outreach Programs
Central Arkansas Regional Science & Engineering Fair
The Central Arkansas Regional Science & Engineering Fair (CARSEF) is affiliated with the Regeneron International Science & Engineering Fair, world’s largest pre-college STEM competition for 9th through 12th grade students, and the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge, the nation’s premier STEM research competition for 6th through 8th grade students.
For more information on this event, please visit the Central Arkansas Regional Science & Engineering website.
Ouachita Mountains Regional Science & Engineering Fair
The mission of the Ouachita Mountains Regional Science & Engineering Fair is to stimulate active interest in science and engineering among middle and high school students in the Ouachita Mountains region by providing a competition that supports their interests in a wide variety of science and engineering-based fields of study.
The Ouachita Mountains Regional Science & Engineering Fair (OMRSEF) is affiliated with the Regeneron International Science & Engineering Fair and the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge, the nation’s premier STEM research competition for 6th through 8th grade students. The OMRSEF is managed by a Board of Directors which includes industry and education leaders interested and committed to providing exposure and exploration of STEM areas for students in the sixteen county region.
For more information on this event, please visit the Ouachita Mountains Regional Science & Engineering Fair Website.
Engineering Olympics
The Engineering Olympics is designed to introduce students to engineering through competitive team events and exercises. All participating schools receive all materials necessary to compete at no charge. There is a nominal fee ($5 per student) to participate.
The 2023 Engineering Olympics: Junior Division (grades 6th-8th) Competition will be February 18. Registration is now open! Please review the rules for more information and registration forms.
2023 Engineering Olympics Rules and Registration
For more information about the 2023 Engineering Olympics, please contact Keith Harris at krharris@ualr.edu.
Arkansas Science Olympiad
The mission of the Arkansas Science Olympiad is to improve the quality of K-12 science education in the state of Arkansas as well as increase the interest in science and engineering among male, female, and minority students and provide recognition for outstanding achievement by both student and faculty members. These goals are accomplished by fostering competition and sportsmanship via the Science Olympiad tournaments, incorporating the Science Olympiad into classroom curriculum, faculty workshops, scholarships, and by stressing the fun and amazement of discovery.
For over 35 years, Science Olympiad has led a revolution in science education. What began as a grassroots assembly of science teachers is now one of the premier science competitions in the nation. Science Olympiad provides rigorous, standards-based challenges to nearly 7,500 teams in 50 states. The ever-changing lineup of events in all STEM disciplines exposes students to practicing scientists and career choices and energizes classroom teachers with a dynamic content experience.
For more information on this event, please visit the Arkansas Science Olympiad Website.
MATHCOUNTS Competition
The MATHCOUNTS Competition Program is a national middle school coaching and competitive mathematics program that promotes mathematics achievement through a series of fun and engaging “bee” style contests. The program exists in all 50 states plus U.S. territories and the Department of Defense and State Department schools.
The competition consists of up to 4 different rounds:
The Sprint Round (40 minutes) consists of 30 problems. This round tests accuracy, with time being such that only the most capable students will complete all of the problems. Calculators are not permitted. Students can compete as a team or as individuals.
The Target Round (approximately 30 minutes) consists of eight problems presented to competitors in four pairs (6 minutes per pair). This round features multi‑step problems that engage Mathletes in mathematical reasoning and problem-solving processes. Problems assume the use of calculators. Students can compete as a team or as individuals.
The Team Round (20 minutes) consists of 10 problems that team members work together to solve. Team member interaction is permitted and encouraged. Problems assume the use of calculators. Only teams can compete – no individuals.
The Countdown Round is a fast-paced, oral competition for top-scoring individuals (based on scores in the Sprint and Target Rounds). In this round, pairs of Mathletes compete against each other and the clock to solve problems. Calculators are not permitted.
DCSTEM partners with the Central Arkansas Chapter of the National Society of Professional Engineers to host the Central Arkansas Chapter Competition of MATHCOUNTS. Area teams and individuals compete at the UA Little Rock campus, and the top competitors advance to the state competition. The winners of the state competition will represent Arkansas at the national competition in Washington, DC in May 2024.
For more information or how to register please visit: https://www.mathcounts.org/
The 2024 Central Arkansas Chapter MATHCOUNTS Competition will take place, in-person, on February 8, 2025.
The 2024 Arkansas State Competition will be March 8, 2025 on the campus of UA Little Rock.
Arkansas Regional High School Science Bowl
The National Science Bowl® encourages students to excel in mathematics and science and to pursue careers in these fields. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Science Bowl® is a nationwide academic competition that tests students’ knowledge in all areas of science and mathematics.
The Arkansas High School Regional is composed of high school student teams from diverse backgrounds comprised of four students, one alternate, and a teacher who serves as an advisor and coach. These teams face-off in a fast-paced question-and-answer format, being tested on a range of science disciplines including biology, chemistry, Earth science, physics, energy, and math.
More than 335,000 students have participated in the National Science Bowl® throughout its 33-year history, and it is one of the nation’s largest science competitions.
Beginning in January each year, more than 7,000 high school students and 4,000 middle school students will compete in 65 high school and 50 middle school regional Science Bowl tournaments. The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science manages the National Science Bowl®, and sponsors the NSB finals competition. The Department of Energy’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.
The Arkansas High School Regional is scheduled on February 15, 2025 at UA Little Rock’ Donaghey College of STEM.
The online team registration will open on October 7, 2024 11:00:00 AM Central Time.
Summer Programs
Summer Camps for 2024
Each year, the Donaghey College of STEM conducts summer programs in order to increase capacity in the STEM pipeline. Our programs are supported through partnerships with business or government partners and our programs are free to students. Each program focuses on specific STEM based subject areas and attempts to provide students with a unique opportunity to be exposed to various STEM career options. Participants have the option to commute or reside on campus (at no charge) during the program.
Two summer camps are available. View more details.
Engineering Scholars Program (June 16 – 22, 2024)
Windstream Girls CODE (Jul 22- Jul 26 – day camp only (commuter)
BEST Robotics – Little Rock BEST
Boosting Engineering Science and Technology (BEST) is a national, eight-week robotics competition held each fall designed to help interest middle school and high school students in possible engineering careers.
The Donaghey College of STEM sponsors Little Rock BEST, a hub for BEST that features two parallel competitions: a robotics game, which is based upon an annual theme with four teams competing at once in a series of three-minute, round-robin matches. The second competition is the BEST Award, which is presented to the team that best embodies the concept of Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology. Elements for the BEST Award include a project summary notebook, oral presentation, table display, and spirit and sportsmanship. To learn more visit Little Rock BEST.
