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Students & SWGs

UT Dallas > Center for Teaching and Learning > Programs > Short-term Working Group > Students & SWGs
Students in Dr. Kristin Atchison’s SWG also helped design active class assignments where students can more deeply engage with the content to develop a richer understanding.
Students in Dr. Kristin Atchison’s SWG helped redesign Lifespan Development (PSY/CLDP 2314) for diverse student needs.
Students in for Dr. Salena Brody’s SWG assisted with co-creating course materials Social Psychology course. They developed skills related to course design, inclusive teaching and online pedagogy.
Students in Dr. Christine Veras’s SWG assisted with creating a 12-foot dinosaur to help promote the play “Winsor & Gertie.” They helped research the best solutions to build Gertie and built it during the summer.
Students in Dr. Christine Veras’ SWG were from any major, preferably with some drawing and sculpting skills.
From character accuracy to developing visual-spatial abilities, the four sections in Dr. Christine Veras’ SWG covered collaborative and crafts skills to build something together.
Students in Dr. Torrie Cropps’ SWG assisted in developing new content/material for a relatively new course — environmental justice. Students with basic knowledge and/or environmental justice were a good fit for this program.
Dr. Alexey Root and the students who participate in her SWG to modernize Howard Staunton’s The Blue Book of Chess into a website with gender-inclusive language and algebraic notation.
Students in Dr. Alexey Root’s SWG developed chess skills, English language skill, and webpage design skills. The objective was to put Chapter I: Introduction of this public domain book on accessible webpages.

The Short-term Working Group (SWG) program is designed to provide UTD students an opportunity to work closely with a faculty member on a targeted project. Students can expect to see projects for Fall 2025 posted in two batches: some “Early Action” SWG projects will be available by May 10th, while the complete SWG project list will be available no later than August 10th. Join the SWG Student Team below to be notified when new projects are available!

Faculty members propose projects and welcome ~10 undergraduate students to join them for four in-person sessions to complete a project. Students who complete a SWG program will gain skills, develop a professional relationship with a faculty member, meet other UTD students and receive a digital badge highlighting skills gained during the project.

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Past Projects

Student Testimonials

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“This SWG was a great way to share ideas and implement tangible changes to a course that will better help future students taking the course (plus, you can add it to your resumé)!”

“SWG was a unique opportunity that came just at the right time. As a transfer student in my senior year, I hadn’t had many opportunities before to network or conduct research. Overall, a 10/10 experience.”

Getting to work with my peers and Dr. Kristin Atchison in a safe, group-oriented way was an incredible experience. I got to strengthen my skills in public speaking, teamwork and time management. It’s such a rewarding feeling to know that our opinions as students do make a difference to faculty members, and that our voices are being heard and put into action through this program. I would recommend this program to any student looking for a challenging and ultimately extremely rewarding experience!

Fall 2025 Projects

Browse details of all Fall 2025 projects

Pre-Dental Microbiology Research Class (Fall 2025)

Faculty Members: Dr. Kelli Palmer

School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics

Students will develop course materials for an undergraduate-level course focused on dental microbiology, including both lecture and lab components. We will identify the most important microbes for dental microbiology and identify exciting and impactful hypotheses that can be tested in a course-based laboratory research setting by undergraduate students. We will identify and develop core learning outcomes for the lecture and lab components by researching dental school microbiology coursework and connecting with dentists in the DFW area. The activities and knowledge developed will be used in a Fall 2026 course.

Dystopian Diner: Food for Thought

Faculty Members: Dr. Wade Crowder

Bass School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology

Students will explore and research the communication challenges inherent in global warming by identifying facts, fiction, and popular myths surrounding climate change. Interviewing and research will be conducted, as students will be exposed to some advanced research skills by accessing popular as well as scholarly sources that help dispel some confusion surrounding climate change. Student interviews will be conducted with subject matter experts; more specifically, they may conduct interviews with UTD faculty who are climate change experts and have studied the climate and are knowledgeable regarding global warming. Students may also reach out to discover facts and subject matter experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Furthermore, students will be provided a simple flow-chart and overview of desired outcomes related to the project.