Summer Research &
Innovation Program

Computer Science and Software Incubator (3 weeks)

Coding is one thing, but designing and developing robust applications is another. In our Incubator, you will formulate and propose a project to complete and recruit their peers to help. While working on your project, we will cover development strategies, testing methodologies, and other aspects which will affect your software (like Intellectual Property Law). Prior to the Incubator, you meet with the Instructor weekly to come up with a good project and research what tools you will use.

• Students must have completed at least one formal computer science class either at NCSSM or at their home high school/community college or have gotten a 4/5 on the CS AP A.

Data Science Service Learning (5 weeks)

NCSSM students will apply their data science skills in small teams to help a local Burke County community organization solve a problem using data. During the 5-week program, each team of NCSSM students will learn about their community organization through weekly on-site visits and learn data science skills and methodologies from graduate students at NC State's Data Science Academy. NCSSM students can expect to analyze data, interpret results, and communicate the impact of their work to their stakeholders.

Community partner projects may include developing more effective member/donor databases, analyzing trends in the utilization of services, optimizing resource allocation, or finding new insights that better achieve the organizations' missions. 

• Students should have completed an introductory course in Data Science (such as MA4110 Foundations of Data Science), statistics, and/or computer programming. Students don't need to have completed coursework in all three areas, but they'll be working on a team where all of these experiences need to be present.

Designing Historical and Social Science Research Projects (2 weeks)

Are you interested in exploring an aspect of local history in your hometown?  Or perhaps, you wish to explore a topic further afield in both time and space, such as the Roman Empire or Sengoku-era Japan?  This SRIP will introduce you to some of the different methodologies and processes used to engage in historical research and to design an original research project.  In addition to learning how to use NCSSM digital resources we will explore the use of different methodological approaches such as Social History, Gender History, Military History, Environmental History and Public History and archival sites in Morganton, Asheville and Boone. Morganton students can use this SRIP to prepare for participating in RHUM in Fall of 2025 and online students can design a research project that they can continue working on at their home school.

• Interest in historical and/or social science research.  Organized and detail-oriented.

Leading Music Therapy Activities for People with Dementia (2 weeks)

Rhythmic activities and therapeutic drumming circles are among the most effective tools we have for creating a communal experience among residents with dementia. Rhythm and music strongly predicated on a rhythmic beat allows residents to respond to one another, with a feeling of competence ""in the moment"" and often with joy. Participating in a rhythm circle allows the resident with dementia who may have lost executive abilities, to take an object and affect another object - and sustain that activity. It provides for meaningful sound when communication skills have deteriorated. Students will learn to be group leaders and observe, first-hand, the ""change"" that people with dementia may experience by participating in musical activities.

• The only musical skill required for this SRIP is a willingness to keep a steady beat with handheld percussion instruments like rhythm sticks, shakers and hand drums. This musical experience is more about having fun while engaging with people that are facing dementia, while observing any transformation that may occur. During rhythmic activities individuals participate in rhythmic body movement, drumming, auditory stimulation, and playing musical instruments, to name a few.

Mapping Folklore across Western North Carolina (2 weeks)

Are you familiar with some of the prevailing folktales associated with Western North Carolina? What were the socio-political and socio-economic origins of these tales, and how have they circulated and been preserved? And why do these paranormal narratives still resonate with us?

This interdisciplinary SRIP will mirror collegiate folklore studies and introduce students to ethnography, history, and the study of popular culture by providing opportunities for students to research folktales of the Old North State as literary texts.

During our two weeks together, we will explore and analyze folktales, paying particular attention to their literary structure, historical and social contexts, and the multiple interpretations they invite us to consider. We will discover overlapping patterns in these stories and attempt to map their connections and places of origin to see whether natural disasters, political conflicts, personal tragedies, or unexplained phenomena played a role in their origins.

We will also go on field trips to sites and archives in Asheville, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and Linville Falls and conduct independent research projects. Students will share the fruits of their research in an academic essay or in a creative project that grows out of their study of a folk tradition in their own family or hometown. 

Join us as we dive into local and regional archives, examine oral traditions and literary texts, and conduct online and on-the-ground research to uncover the fascinating connection between Western North Carolina folk narratives and our state’s history.

• None

Robotics Design Exploration (3 weeks)

Students will get the opportunity to conduct an in-depth exploration of the field of Robotics. Students will create team-based robotic designs and software development within mobile or underwater environments. Software topics may include; A.I., Machine Learning, Computer Vision, and Path Planning. Students will also learn to use the Fab Lab metal shop equipment for the custom fabrication of their designs.

• Intermediate skills in Python/C++ and CAD software