Past Catalyst Grantees

Grantee: Patton M. Allison, Mechanical Engineering - College of Engineering

Blurb: The Department of Mechanical Engineering’s aerospace concentration is taking flight with an innovative approach to experiential learning. This Catalyst-funded project integrates 3D printing, CAD design, and simulation-based analysis into two core aerospace courses—Aerodynamics (ME 441) and Propulsion (ME 440).

Students will apply real-world engineering principles through hands-on projects, including a 3D-printed glider design competition and a rocket nozzle simulation challenge. By designing, testing, and iterating their models, students will gain deeper insights into aerodynamics and propulsion while developing valuable digital design and problem-solving skills.

With cloud-accessible 3D printers available at no cost to students, this initiative ensures equitable access to cutting-edge learning tools. By blending theory with application, the project prepares students for the evolving aerospace industry, bridging classroom knowledge with practical engineering challenges. 🚀✈️

#InnovationInTeaching #STEMEducation #3DPrinting #AerospaceEngineering

Grantee: David Baylis Catalyst, College of Social Science - Center for Integrative Studies 

Blurb: This Catalyst-funded project is redefining how students engage with place and community by integrating GoPro ethnography and digital mapping tools. Through immersive video storytelling and qualitative GIS, students in this course will explore social spaces in Lansing and East Lansing, mapping both commonly and less commonly recognized elements of community life.

Using Social Explorer, ArcGIS Online, and Final Cut Pro, students will create empathetic mental, physical, and digital maps that reflect diverse identities and perspectives. The goal is to enhance civic engagement and place connection by seeing the world through different lenses—literally and figuratively.

By combining technology with ethnographic research, this project challenges traditional ideas about mapping, deepening students’ understanding of how social and political factors shape the spaces we navigate daily.

#DigitalMapping #Ethnography #SenseOfPlace #CivicEngagement

Grantees: Susan Bonner and Celeste Campos-Castillo, Department of Media and Information in the College of Communication Arts and Sciences

Blurb: This Catalyst-funded project is bridging the digital divide by providing mobile technology that enables students to co-create universally designed mental health screening tools for autistic adolescents. Through collaborative research and peer learning, students will use high-powered mobile devices, animation software, and augmented reality tools to design more inclusive and accessible mental health assessments.

By integrating Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, this initiative ensures that the mental health screening tools are accessible to individuals with diverse cognitive, visual, and hearing abilities—allowing all users to experience and interact with the tools simultaneously and equitably.

The mobile tech cart funded through this grant will eliminate barriers to participation by providing students access to essential technology for research, game design, UX testing, and augmented reality projects. This project not only enhances digital equity in the classroom but also transforms the accessibility of mental health care for neurodiverse populations.

#InclusiveInnovation #MentalHealthEquity #UniversalDesign #DigitalAccessibility

Grantees: Jinjie Liu; Christoph Benning, Biological Sciences Program; MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory

Blurb: This Catalyst-funded project is transforming undergraduate research by developing an interactive digital platform for a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) in cell and molecular biology. Through this initiative, students will engage in authentic research by screening plant mutants, contributing to an evolving database of discoveries, and analyzing real-world data—all within a structured, collaborative learning environment.

The new CURE website will:

• 🌱 Host student-generated research data, allowing future students to build on past discoveries.
• 📊 Enhance course learning by integrating real research findings into instructional materials.
• 📚 Serve as a digital reference book, making essential biology concepts and lab protocols more accessible.
• 🌎 Foster a research community, extending beyond the classroom to connect students, faculty, and researchers.

By bridging classroom learning with hands-on discovery, this platform promotes inclusivity, collaboration, and scientific engagement, ensuring that students from all backgrounds can contribute meaningfully to research while enhancing their academic and career trajectories.

#UndergraduateResearch #STEMEducation #DigitalInnovation #CURELearning

Grantee: Natalie Vandepol, Broad College

Blurb: This Catalyst-funded project is piloting Tailored Tutor, an AI-driven Socratic tutor designed to provide personalized learning support in foundational accounting courses. Unlike traditional AI tools, Tailored Tutor guides students through problem-solving rather than simply providing answers, helping them develop critical thinking skills while reinforcing course concepts.

With plans to expand from advanced accounting (ACC 300) into large-enrollment courses (ACC 201 and 202), this initiative aims to:

• 📚 Enhance student success by offering adaptive, on-demand learning support outside of class hours.
• 📊 Reduce opportunity gaps by providing private, personalized assistance—particularly benefiting first-generation and underrepresented students.
• 🤖 Improve student engagement and performance through AI-powered interactive learning tailored to course content.

By leveraging AI to scale personalized support, this project is setting the stage for a more inclusive, accessible, and effective learning environment—one where every student has the tools they need to succeed.

#AIinEducation #PersonalizedLearning #EdTech #StudentSuccess

Grantee: Sheri K. Lewis, African American and African Studies

Blurb: This Catalyst-funded project brings project-based learning into African American and African Studies (AAAS) courses by integrating digital magazine-making as a creative and analytical tool for students. Through hands-on experience with storytelling, graphic design, photography, and digital media tools, students will transform their coursework into published digital and print magazines that explore social identity, justice, and cultural narratives.

By using Adobe InDesign, Canva, ProCreate, and AI-powered design tools, students will:

• 🖌️ Develop technical skills in digital media, graphic design, and visual storytelling.
• 📖 Engage with course concepts through a creative, project-based learning model.
• ✊🏾 Advance social justice initiatives by documenting and amplifying Black stories and experiences.
• 🎨 Foster interdisciplinary collaboration across media, design, and the humanities.

The culminating magazine launch event will showcase student work to the broader MSU community, ensuring real-world impact beyond the classroom. This project not only enhances student engagement and creativity but also preserves Black narratives through digital archiving, empowering students to see themselves as scholars, artists, and changemakers.

#DigitalStorytelling #ProjectBasedLearning #SocialJustice #CreativePedagogy