How did the GARDE program support class projects that designed technology for people with disabilities?

The National Science Foundation's General & Age Related Disabilities Engineering (GARDE) program supported undergraduate engineering design projects that developed technology to support people with disabilities. Projects funded through this program had multiple benefits, including:

• They development of technology that aided a specific person,
• Undergraduate engineering students gained experience designing for a person with a disability, and
• They fostered relationships between the educational institution and organizations that support people with disabilities.

For more information about projects funded through the GARDE program and its predecessors, consult Engineering Senior Design Projects For Persons With Disabilities.

GARDE no longer directly supports Undergraduate Engineering Design projects targeting the needs of people with disabilities. Instead they have shifted interest to supporting Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) activities focused on improving the quality of life for people with disabilities. These REUs can be funded as supplements to existing GARDE awards or by submitting proposals for REU Sites, which will be reviewed in collaboration with the Program Director for the GARDE program.

For more information on REUs read NSF's Research Experiences for Undergraduates.