3:00 PM to 5:30 PM Academic Experience Agenda at Faculty Dining Room, Music Building, Lehman
3:00 PM: Welcome Remarks by Jorge Silva-Puras, Esq., Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Student Success, Lehman
3:15 PM: Institutional Presentations:
- Lehman College, CUNY, by Dr. Teresita Levy, Executive Director, Office of International Programs and Community Engagement
- Bronx Community College, CUNY, by Dr. Irene Delgado, Interim Director of Career Development
3:30 PM: Student Presentations:
Presentation I (3:30 PM to 3:45 PM) (Recording will be available soon)
Presenter: Gabriel Bencosme from Lehman College, CUNY
Project: Winter in Puerto Rico 2025: Leveraging Technology for Global Learning
Description of the project: Asynchronous online learning in the Bronx is combined with an in-person study abroad experience in Puerto Rico in this innovative HyField course, Winter in Puerto Rico. Over three weeks, students learn about the history and culture of Puerto Rico, participating in online discussions, posting reflections on Padlet, and traveling to Puerto Rico to meet with artists, community organizers, and cultural institutions. Such a model allows for more engaged learning, a deeper intellectual connection with the material, and personal growth.
Biography: Gabriel Bencosme is an upper-level senior at Lehman College majoring in Latin American and Latino Studies. He is also a singer and performer and is active in several campus organizations.
Presentation II (3:45 PM to 4:15 PM) (Recording will be available soon)
Presenters: Jairon Jafet Carrasco Cortés & Manuel Hernández Torres from Inter American University of Puerto Rico
Project: Innovation In puertorican Robotics
Description of the project: Inter Robotics is a team composed of STEM students focused on competing and venturing our intellect as we participate in the VEX Robotics Championship. This project tests our teamwork skills by facing different obstacles in building two competitive robots, where the mechanics are in charge of CAD’s, the programmers are in charge of developing the manual and autonomous period codes, and the logistics sub-team is in charge of design documentation, team organization, and strategic advancement within the given constraints. In the 2023-2024 season, we competed in the “2024 Puerto Rico National Championship”, where we were crowned champions of the tournament being in first place undefeated, plus the “Robot Skills Champions” award. Thanks to this we got a pass to the “2024 VEX Robotics World Championship” in Dallas, Texas, held in April 2024, where we won the “Judges Award” and even obtained rank 5 among the best 60 universities in the world that competed in our category. This year we competed at the national level where we won the “Judges Award” and we will continue working so that the new generation continues to reap achievements for our campus in the coming years. This project materializes the passion and talent of Puerto Rican students, and our greatest aspiration is to inspire future engineers and continue contributing to the technological advances of the island.
Biographies:
Jairon Jafet Carrasco Cortés is a second-year student in Computer Engineering at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Bayamón Campus. He has excelled as a student leader inside and outside the academic environment, actively participating in the official robotics team “Inter Robotics”, where he serves as a programmer and member of the logistics and communications subsystems. He has developed key skills in his training, including proficiency in the C++ programming language and professional proposal writing. In addition, he participated in the NASA L’Space Academy: NPWEE (NASA Proposal Writing and Evaluation Experience), strengthening his expertise in technical proposals.
Manuel Hernández Torres is a fifth-year Mechanical Engineering student at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Bayamon Campus. Throughout his academic journey, he has built a solid foundation in key areas such as thermodynamics, heat transfer, materials mechanics, HVAC system design, and motor vehicle dynamics. He complements his technical expertise with proficiency in engineering software such as SolidWorks, MATLAB, and Ansys, as well as office tools like Excel and Word.Over the past year, Manuel has been an active member of the InterRobotics team, serving as a mechanical engineer. In this role, he has contributed to the design, modeling, and assembly of components and played a key part in creating the team’s engineering notebook. His team’s efforts were recognized with the Judge’s Award at the VEX U National Competition in Puerto Rico, highlighting their creativity and innovation.Manuel is known for being a dedicated, organized individual with a deep curiosity for understanding how mechanical systems work. He enjoys technical challenges and constantly seeks opportunities to apply his knowledge to real-world projects. Outside the classroom, he has a strong passion for automobiles particularly classic Japanese and American cars and is currently restoring a 1952 Chevrolet 3100. He also has experience as an independent car seller, which has sharpened his communication, attention to detail, and negotiation skills. His goal is to continue growing as an engineer by merging academic knowledge with hands-on experience, and to ultimately contribute to innovative projects in the field of mechanical engineering.