2008 Woodie Awards
Swim captain helps disabled
Tyler Will
Issue date: 2/14/08 Section: News
02/14/08 - Maria Cieslewski is the captain of the University of Rhode Island swim team and a double major in biomedical and electrical engineering, and on March 8, she will be recognized as an honorary student-athlete at a basketball game.
Mick Westcott, the head swim coach at URI, selected Cieslewski, a non-recruited walk-on, for the recognition.
"Maria certainly deserves the recognition in our opinion because of the way she handled the leadership role, her academic success and what a great athlete she has turned out to be," he said.
Westcott described a swim meet last year in which Cieslewski did well.
"She had times that just blew us away," he said. "She just works hard at everything she does. She's a great role model for our younger athletes. We need to recognize those kind of kids."
After she graduates in December 2008, Cieslewski said she hopes to work for an engineering company to produce products for disabled children.
"I want to create technology that will help kids buffer their disability," she said. "To see the smile on their face when they can do something they weren't able to do before."
She said liking children is part of her personality.
Cieslewski interned over the summer with a URI biomedical engineering professor. During her work, she built a remote control device that allows disabled patients to control their television, lights and other electronics in their room. "It helps them control their environment," she said.
Cieslewski said the remote, called a Power Scan, features a series of bulbs that light up in a sequence. The patient watches for a button with the desired function to light up, and then pushes that button with his or her finger or tongue. Waiting for the proper button to light up teaches the patient mental coordination, Cieslewski said.
She said the internship happens every summer and lots of students build the remotes, which are sent to the Eleanor Slater Hospital in Cranston, R.I. after completion. The interns use instructions to build the remotes, Cieslewski said.
Mick Westcott, the head swim coach at URI, selected Cieslewski, a non-recruited walk-on, for the recognition.
"Maria certainly deserves the recognition in our opinion because of the way she handled the leadership role, her academic success and what a great athlete she has turned out to be," he said.
Westcott described a swim meet last year in which Cieslewski did well.
"She had times that just blew us away," he said. "She just works hard at everything she does. She's a great role model for our younger athletes. We need to recognize those kind of kids."
After she graduates in December 2008, Cieslewski said she hopes to work for an engineering company to produce products for disabled children.
"I want to create technology that will help kids buffer their disability," she said. "To see the smile on their face when they can do something they weren't able to do before."
She said liking children is part of her personality.
Cieslewski interned over the summer with a URI biomedical engineering professor. During her work, she built a remote control device that allows disabled patients to control their television, lights and other electronics in their room. "It helps them control their environment," she said.
Cieslewski said the remote, called a Power Scan, features a series of bulbs that light up in a sequence. The patient watches for a button with the desired function to light up, and then pushes that button with his or her finger or tongue. Waiting for the proper button to light up teaches the patient mental coordination, Cieslewski said.
She said the internship happens every summer and lots of students build the remotes, which are sent to the Eleanor Slater Hospital in Cranston, R.I. after completion. The interns use instructions to build the remotes, Cieslewski said.