{"id":37161,"date":"2025-07-25T20:41:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T20:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/37161\/"},"modified":"2025-07-25T20:41:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T20:41:09","slug":"usf-bellini-college-of-artificial-intelligence-cybersecurity-and-computing-hosts-inaugural-summer-research-program-ahead-of-fall-launch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/37161\/","title":{"rendered":"USF Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing hosts inaugural summer research program ahead of fall launch"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Cassidy Delamarter<\/a>, University Communications and Marketing<\/p>\n

From training robots to integrating artificial intelligence into hardware systems,
\n the USF Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing <\/a>wrapped up its first-ever summer research program, completing a major milestone ahead
\n of its official launch this fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As part of the new USF Bridge Coalition Program, undergraduate research scholars from
\n the University of Rhode Island were invited to work side-by-side with USF faculty
\n to tackle real-world challenges and gain hands-on experience at USF that could launch
\n careers in robotics, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a historic step forward for USF,\u201d said Sylvia Wilson Thomas<\/a>, vice president for USF Research & Innovation. \u201cIt\u2019s a powerful example of what can
\n happen when we create intentional pathways that link students with mentors, labs and
\n real-world challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 10-week program, funded by the Florida High Tech Corridor <\/a>and USF Research & Innovation<\/a>, is designed to foster collaboration between Research 1 (R1) universities, such as
\n USF, and institutions that have not traditionally had access to the same level of
\n research. The first cohort included three undergraduate students who were matched
\n with USF faculty members based on academic goals and research interests.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t just about research,\u201d said Saundra Johnson Austin, director of USF\u2019s Office of Student Engagement in Research and Innovation,<\/a> who leads the program. \u201cIt\u2019s about building bridges between institutions, between
\n students and mentors and between talent and opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving our URI engineering scholars selected for USF’s new program is not only a
\n blessing, but a partnership in engineering and science that can last for years to
\n come,\u201d said Charles Watson<\/a>, assistant dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Rhode Island.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Denilo Semedo, a junior double-majoring in electrical engineering and French with
\n a minor in robotics, is exploring multi-object grasping with Yu Sun<\/a>, a USF professor of computer science and engineering. Multi-object grasping is a
\n complex challenge in the world of robotics, and one of Sun\u2019s primary areas of focus
\n in his Robot Perception and Action Lab<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was originally torn between mechanical and electrical engineering, but once I got
\n introduced to robotics, I knew this was something I wanted to pursue,\u201d Semedo said.
\n \u201cThis experience is helping me figure out if this is the right career path.\u201d<\/p>\n

The goal of the program is to strengthen national competitiveness, accelerate innovation
\n and cultivate the next generation of research scholars and entrepreneurs. The students
\n spent the summer researching and concluded the program by presenting their findings
\n at the 2025 \u201cOneUSF\u201d Undergraduate Research Symposium<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Andrew Texeira was able to showcase an early prototype of the robot he developed this
\n summer: A robot that he made walk, talk and show emotions. The electrical engineering
\n junior is minoring in robotics and dreams of being a robotics engineer after graduation.
\n This summer\u2019s program provided Texeira with a unique opportunity in the lab of Zhao Han<\/a>, an assistant professor focused on developing novel robotic systems that are more
\n understandable when interacting with humans.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough hands-on experiences, they\u2019re unlocking their creative potential \u2014 asking
\n deeper questions, building curiosity, and discovering solutions they never imagined,\u201d
\n said Florida High Tech Corridor CEO Paul Sohl, who has prioritized and expanded the
\n organization\u2019s support for undergraduate research and other STEM and innovation learning
\n programs during his five-year tenure.<\/p>\n

Working alongside USF Associate Professor Hao Zheng<\/a>, Cesar Sicaju, a junior studying computer and electrical engineering with a minor
\n in computer science, learned about prompt engineering, which is an emerging field
\n that involves curating prompts to feed large language models, such as Microsoft Copilot,
\n to produce the best results.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis opportunity has taught me a lot of skills that I believe will transfer over
\n and be applicable elsewhere,\u201d he said. \u201cI am honored to have worked with Dr. Zheng
\n throughout this entire process. Some advice for anyone who is looking into programs
\n that are far away from home: Don\u2019t be afraid to venture into a new environment, sometimes
\n that change is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The success of this summer\u2019s pilot cohort has set the stage for future expansion \u2013
\n Johnson Austin has already started to build upon this year\u2019s partnership with URI
\n and is working to identify new university partners for the 2026 Bridge Coalition Program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Also inspired by this year\u2019s success, Zheng is planning to lead a new National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates<\/a> in hardware security that\u2019s open to all universities, making it the college\u2019s first
\n Research Experience for Undergraduates<\/a>. The program will provide students with foundational knowledge and supervised research
\n experience in hardware security, a critical component of cybersecurity and national
\n infrastructure. Zheng hopes to begin accepting applications in March 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cPrograms like this not only ignite student innovation, they strengthen Florida\u2019s
\n talent pipeline and fuel Tampa Bay\u2019s rise as a national hub for collaboration, opportunity
\n and a high-tech future,\u201d \u00a0Paul Sohl said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By: Cassidy Delamarter, University Communications and Marketing From training robots to integrating artificial intelligence into hardware systems, the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37162,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[191,74],"class_list":{"0":"post-37161","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-computing","8":"tag-computing","9":"tag-technology"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37161","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37161"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37161\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}