Inclusive Interaction Lab

A really well-written article about our Summer Internship Program for high school students. It's wonderful to see the program getting this kind of recognition. Thank you to Patty for the write-up, and thanks to Anna, Advay, Hasini, Jasamarbir, and Veena for their thoughtful comments. I'm truly touched by their reflections and by seeing the impact the program has had on the lives and careers of our alumni.

High School Students Invited to Apply for Free Computer Science Internship | Newsroom By Patty Guerra, UC MercedJanuary 22, 2026The program runs for 12 weeks.High school students have an extraordinary opportunity to explore software development through a summer internship program at UC Merced. Computer science and engineering Professor Ahmed Arif started the High School Internship pr...

We launched our Summer Internship Program for local high school students back in 2018 to give young minds early exposure to research and software development. Each year, I personally mentor four high school interns, teaching them how to conduct research responsibly, uphold strong ethical standards, and gain hands-on experience in building real-world software systems.

The program was briefly paused during the pandemic but returned virtually in 2021, a shift that made it far more accessible. Since then, applications have grown from just 10-15 to over 100 each year, primarily from students across the Bay Area.

Last Saturday, we held the Certificate Ceremony for our 2025 cohort! The event brought together interns, graduate students, and families (parents, guardians, and siblings) to celebrate the interns’ accomplishments. Each student presented their research, interacted with our graduate team, and received their certificates.

This year’s group was truly exceptional, working on a range of innovative projects involving gestural interaction, stress detection, personal assistants, and emotion recognition. Their curiosity, creativity, and dedication continue to inspire me every summer!

We were thrilled to host Dr. Julia Woodward at the Inclusive Interaction Lab last week! Dr. Woodward delivered an invited talk titled "Designing AR Headset Interfaces for Adults and Children," where she shared valuable insights on eliciting gestures from child users and incorporating their feedback to improve interactions, not just for children, but for a wider range of users. The talk was well attended and sparked lively discussions among participants. Following the presentation, she toured the lab, interacted with our members, explored their demos, and offered thoughtful feedback. Both the students and I greatly enjoyed her visit and left feeling inspired by her work and perspective! Thanks, Julia!

I had the opportunity to give an invited talk titled "Beyond Algorithms: Human Behaviors and Social Cues in Human-Robot Interaction" at the 2025 DCSE Summer Course on AI and Robotics in Society 5.0, organized by the Department of Computer Science and Electronics at Universitas Gadjah Mada Indonesia.

While I've given many invited talks and guest lectures over the years, this was my first on human-robot interaction or robotics. My interest in the field began with my PhD student Ghazal Zand, who had a strong background in robotics before joining my lab. I'm pleased that our work over the past five years has resonated enough for others to invite us to speak on these topics, especially among such accomplished researchers!

The event was thoughtfully organized and warmly hosted by Isna Bustoni. I received some thought-provoking questions afterward, making it a great experience.