Explore how engineering innovations can improve lives and shape the future of health care through interactive demonstrations led by University of Iowa engineering students, during a 2026 Community STEM Day in Cedar Rapids on July 16.
Biomedical engineering students will be on hand to share their passion for a field that combines engineering, medicine, and science to improve human health. Through hands-on activities, the students hope to inspire the next generation of innovators while demonstrating how biomedical engineering impacts everyday life.
Save the date
What: Community STEM Day, featuring workshops, demonstrations, lab tours, music, and food trucks
When: Thursday, July 16, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Where: Collins Aerospace, 400 Collins Road NE in Cedar Rapids.
For whom? K-12 students and families interested in STEM careers and educational opportunities across the region
Hosts: Collins Aerospace and the Southeast Iowa STEM Region
Cost: Free
For more information visit se.iowastem.org/community-stem-day.
One demonstration will feature ultrasound imaging systems, including equipment used for general imaging and cardiac applications.
“The demonstration highlights how advances in engineering and medicine come together to create powerful diagnostic tools,” said Jacob Kitzmann, a PhD candidate involved with the ultrasound demonstration.
Attendees will be able to operate the machines using imaging phantoms or their own anatomy, gaining firsthand experience with the technology physicians and clinicians use every day.
The second exhibit will feature a blood flow simulator, a benchtop system that recreates blood-like flow through a network of artificial arteries allowing for the testing of cardiovascular devices to catch design flaws early, reducing risk to patients.
The demonstration underscores how engineers work alongside health care professionals to improve patient safety and develop new medical technologies.
In addition to Kitzmann, UI engineering students Reza Amouzandeh, Partho Ghosh, and Emma Sahly have volunteered for the event.
Last year's event attracted more than 3,000 attendees and featured 77 exhibitors.