News Release | Community
Join the UTCRS STEM Summer Camps this June at UTRGV. K-12 students will explore robotics and engineering challenges while learning about careers in transportation engineering. Sessions run from June 2-26 in Edinburg. (UTRGV Archival Photo by Silver Salas)
Friday, April 25, 2025
Alumni
By Maria Gonzalez
EDINBURG, TEXAS – APRIL 25, 2025 – The University Transportation Center for Railway Safety (UTCRS) at UTRGV will host its annual UTCRS STEM Summer Camps in June, welcoming K-12 students from across the Rio Grande Valley.
Recognized by the U.S. Department of Transportation as one of the largest transportation-related STEM camps in the nation, this hands-on program introduces students to careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, with a focus on transportation engineering.
The 2025 camps will run in one-week sessions from June 2-26 at the UTRGV Edinburg Campus.
Participants will explore robotics, magnetic levitation and real-world engineering challenges using interactive tools such as LEGO MINDSTORM, SPIKE Prime and Pi-Top Robotics.
“The UTCRS STEM Summer Camps aim to introduce participants to careers in STEM with emphasis on transportation engineering,” said Dr. Constantine Tarawneh, Louis A. Beecherl, Jr. Endowed Professor and UTCRS director. “Participants will have a chance to engage, learn and innovate in a fun, interactive setting while building confidence, teamwork skills and a stronger interest in STEM.”
Interested parents are encouraged to attend one of three orientation sessions in May. The orientation dates are as follows:
The camps will conclude with a final competition and closing ceremony on June 27.
The cost to attend the camp is $100 per student, unless it is covered by the school district.
Registration is available at UTRGV Youth Programs.
For more information, contact the UTCRS office at 956-665-8164 or email railwaysafety@utrgv.edu.
ABOUT UTRGV
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2013 as the first major public university of the 21st century in Texas. This transformative initiative provided the opportunity to expand educational opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley, including a new School of Medicine, and made it possible for residents of the region to benefit from the Permanent University Fund – a public endowment contributing support to the University of Texas System and other institutions.
UTRGV has campuses and off-campus research and teaching sites throughout the Rio Grande Valley including in Boca Chica Beach, Brownsville (formerly The University of Texas at Brownsville campus), Edinburg (formerly The University of Texas-Pan American campus), Harlingen, McAllen, Port Isabel, Rio Grande City, and South Padre Island. UTRGV, a comprehensive academic institution, enrolled its first class in the fall of 2015, and the School of Medicine welcomed its first class in the summer of 2016.