Research Impact Partners

The Center hosts a variety of education and outreach initiatives that can be leveraged in research proposals, e.g., the K-5 Research Experiences for Teachers program, Research Experiences for Undergraduates program, First Year Undergraduate Research Program: FUSE, Industrial Mentorship program for Graduate Students, Artist in Residence program, afterschool STEM clubs at local schools, and K-12 STEM outreach to the Texas School for the Deaf and Texas School for the Blind.

The Master Interlocal Agreement (ILA) between the City of Austin and The University of Texas at Austin facilitates research opportunities for City departments to collaborate more easily with university researchers. This form is for current COA Staff and UT Principal Investigators (PIs). The information provided on this form will be used to match City Departments with UT researchers.

Cumbre Kids produce children's STEM podcasts that reach 130,000 Spanish-speaking families. Their programs feature researchers answering questions submitted by children 3-10 years old. Cumbre Kids has worked with the McDonald Observatory at UT Austin, as well as dozens of universities, federal agencies, museums, and more.

The Imagining America consortium (IA) brings together scholars, artists, designers, humanists, and organizers to imagine, study, and enact a more just and liberatory ‘America’ and world. Working across institutional, disciplinary, and community divides, IA strengthens and promotes public scholarship, cultural organizing, and campus change that inspires collective imagination, knowledge-making, and civic action on pressing public issues.

McNair Scholars is part of the federally funded TRIO programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education, and the only one primarily focused on students' postbaccalaureate success. McNair Scholars seek to increase the number of undergraduate students earning doctoral degrees who are low-income and first-generation. Participants must be serious and committed to enrolling in graduate programs with an end goal of completing a Ph.D. Students selected to participate in McNair Scholars work with both staff (on graduate school literacy) and a faculty mentor (on research and scholarship). Scholars define, develop, and deliver original, independent research projects.

The community engagement team in the Undergraduate College stewards sustainable relationships with local, regional, and statewide communities and organizations toward the goal of supporting mutual benefit for communities and the people of The University.

The Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) connect PIs with undergraduate research assistants through our student advising and our online database of faculty research interests and projects (https://eureka.utexas.edu). OUR hosts Summer Research Scholars programming to support the professional development of undergraduate researchers taking part in summer research programs (e.g., NSF REUs), and offers a variety of student research funding opportunities and research presentation events to further the work and development of student researchers.

Public Interest Technology University Network (PIT-UN) is a collaboration of universities and colleges committed to developing curricula, research agendas, and experiential learning programs in public interest technology (PIT). PIT-UN helps advance the field of PIT and bring positive impact to communities around the globe by providing programming and funding for members to grow PIT on their campuses and communities.

Saffron Trust is working to break the cycle of generational poverty caused by system inequality to strengthen the community. This is accomplished by helping women find the stability they need to survive, and the education and resources that they and their children need to thrive. Saffron Trusts partners with nonprofits, community organizations, and businesses, and serving as a central point of contact and advocacy for women in need of support. Saffron Trust builds trust-based partnerships that last for life with the goal of helping women thrive long-term by connecting them with immediate needs such as food, shelter, and healthcare, but also with resources for longer-term education, employment, and mental and emotional health.

UT Austin’s national award-winning STEM Girl Day is a FREE event, presented by Women in STEM, and gives K-8th grade students and their families, educators, and other adults a chance to explore STEM through grade-appropriate, hands-on activities hosted by scientists, engineers, astronomers, mathematicians and other STEM enthusiasts from student organizations, research centers, corporate partners and community organizations.