Skip to main content
University of Nebraska Omaha logo University of Nebraska Omaha
APPLY MY UNO DIRECTORY

Students Faculty Staff Community
APPLY MY UNO DIRECTORY
Students Faculty Staff Community
  • About
    About UNO
    • Leadership
    • Mission and Strategic Plan
    • Accreditation
    • Our City: Omaha
    • Facts & Figures
    • News
    • Events
    • Organizational Units
    • Campus Safety
    • Buildings and Maps
    Get Started
    • Apply
    • Campus Visit
    • Contact Us
    Front view of UNO's ASH building
    Get Started Today

    Apply Now
  • Academics
    Majors and Programs
    • Undergraduate Programs
    • Master's Programs
    • Doctoral Programs
    • International Programs
    • Online Programs
    • Class Search
    Colleges
    • College of Arts and Sciences
    • College of Business Administration
    • College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media
    • College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences
    • College of Information Science & Technology
    • College of Public Affairs and Community Service
    • Graduate Studies
    Resources
    • Catalogs
    • Academic Calendar
    • Library
    • Advising
    • Academic Affairs
    • Registrar
    • Academic Support
    • Request Transcript
    UNO students walking on campus.
    Stay on Track.

    Find deadlines, term dates, and other important information on UNO's Academic Calendar.

    Academic Calendar
  • Cost & Aid Backback to Main menu
    • Undergraduate Tuition
    • Graduate Tuition
    • Financial Support
    • Cost of Attendance
    • Undergraduate Scholarships
    • All Scholarship Information
    • Military and Veterans Benefits
    • Consumer Information
  • Admissions
    Get Started
    • Apply
    • Complete Your FAFSA
    • Schedule a Campus Visit
    • Request Info
    Admitted Students
    • Orientation
    • Enrollment Deposit
    • Transcripts
    • UNO 101
    • New Student & Family Events
    Cost & Aid
    • Undergraduate Tuition
    • Graduate Tuition
    • Financial Aid
    • Cost of Attendance
    • Scholarships
    • Military and Veterans Benefits
    • Consumer Information
    Admissions
    • Undergraduate Admissions
    • Transfer Students
    • Graduate Admissions
    Students walking together on campus for a tour
    Visit UNO's Campus

    Schedule a Tour
  • Student Life
    Campus Life
    • Event Calendar
    • Athletics
    • Campus Dining
    • Student Housing
    • Campus Recreation
    • Milo Bail Student Center
    • Parking and Transportation
    • Campus Safety
    Involvement and Leadership
    • Student Organizations
    • Student Government
    • Career Services and Internships
    • Spirit and Tradition
    • Student Leadership and Involvement
    Support
    • Academic Support
    • Maverick Advising Center
    • Accessibility
    • Durango's Advancement & Support Hub (DASH)
    • Student Service
    • Student Conduct and Case Management
    Resources
    • Military-Connected Resources
    • Student Safety
    • Division of Student Life and Wellbeing
    Students sitting on blankets, eating popcorn, watching a movie
    Get Involved on Campus

    See Events Calendar
  • Engagement
    Students
    • Student Service and Leadership Collaborative
    • Find Volunteer Opportunities
    • Maverick Food Pantry
    • Voter Information
    • Internship Opportunities
    • Career Services
    • Student Resources
    • Become an Engaged Scholar
    Faculty and Staff
    • Faculty Senate
    • Center for Faculty Excellence
    • Staff Advisory Council
    • Faculty Resources
    • Engaged Research
    • Service Learning Academy
    • Community-Based Learning Courses
    Community
    • Campus Resources
    • Service Learning Academy
    • Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center
    • Promote Volunteer Opportunities
    • Promote Internship Opportunities
    • Rent Office Space
    • Senior Passport Program
    • Community Engagement Partnership Initiative
    Office of Engagement
    • Office of Engagement
    • Connect to Campus
    • Barbara Weitz Community Engagement Center
    • Service Learning Academy
    • Rent Office Space
    • Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center
    • Partner With Us
    • Senior Passport Program
    • Nebraska Business Development Center
    • Community Partners on Campus
    Student volunteering with a food bank
    Connect with Us

    Contact the Office of Engagement
  • Research
    Student
    • Research and Creative Activity Fair
    • Graduate Research (GRACA)
    • Student Conference Travel Fund
    • Undergraduate Scholarly Experience (FUSE) Fund
    Faculty
    • Grant Databases
    • External Funding
    • Awards and Committees
    • Office of Sponsored Programs
    Research at UNO
    • Office of Research and Creative Activity
    • Research News
    • Centers and Institutes
    Students giving presentations on research projects
    UNO Pushes Innovation Forward

    Read UNO Research News
  • Athletics
    Men's Teams
    • Baseball
    • Basketball
    • Golf
    • Hockey
    • Soccer
    • Swimming & Diving
    • Tennis
    Women's Teams
    • Basketball
    • Cross Country
    • Golf
    • Soccer
    • Softball
    • Swimming & Diving
    • Tennis
    • Track & Field
    • Volleyball
    Game Day Resources
    • Purchase Tickets
    • Team Schedules
    • Buy Maverick Gear
    Baxter Arena
    • Calendar
    • Tickets
    • Directions & Parking
    • Clear Bag Policy
    • Public Skating
    Hockey player walking out on the ice arena
    Cheer on our Mavericks!

    Buy Tickets
  • Alumni Backback to Main menu
    • Alumni
    • Transcripts
    • Thompson Center
  1. UNO
  2. News
  3. 2025
  4. 09
  5. Virtual Reality Offers Healthy Challenge to HABIT Camp Participants

Virtual Reality Offers Healthy Challenge to HABIT Camp Participants

The Munroe-Meyer Institute’s HABIT Virtual Reality Camp blends gaming with groundbreaking brain-computer interface technology to help kids with cerebral palsy build strength, confidence, and independence.

  • published: 2025/09/02
  • contact: Kelsey Kirk - UNMC Strategic Communications
Connor Strobel plays a virtual reality game during HABIT camp at the Munroe-Meyer Institute. The camp is designed to allow children with cerebral palsy and other conditions to work on using both hands to complete a task in the form of play.

Connor Strobel plays a virtual reality game during HABIT camp at the Munroe-Meyer Institute. The camp is designed to allow children with cerebral palsy and other conditions to work on using both hands to complete a task in the form of play.

Sensor caps help camp facilitators track brain activity and intent to move limbs. Facilitators can then administer gentle stimulation to encourage movement in participants’ weaker arm.

Sensor caps help camp facilitators track brain activity and intent to move limbs. Facilitators can then administer gentle stimulation to encourage movement in participants’ weaker arm.

Virtual reality games are designed to get campers to use both arms.

Virtual reality games are designed to get campers to use both arms.

Entering his teenage years, Connor Strobel started to find traditional therapies for his cerebral palsy less and less appealing. The games and challenges presented by those sessions didn’t pack the same luster.

But two years ago, Strobel found Hand Arm Bimanual Intensive Training Virtual Reality camp at the Munroe-Meyer Institute.

The camp uses virtual reality gaming to net similar results to traditional HABIT camp, which is designed to allow children with cerebral palsy and other conditions to work on using both hands to complete a task in the form of play.

Strobel, now 15, doesn’t see the camp as just another therapy session.

“I feel like I’m in a dream,” he said during his first session of camp. “I wake up every morning and it’s time for video games.”

This summer, Strobel tackled another 10-day session at MMI — this time with an added element. Strobel was one of four campers to participate using brain-computer interface (BCI).

By wearing a sensor cap, camp facilitators could see the regions of Strobel’s brain and could track the intention to move his upper limbs. They could then deliver gentle stimulation to Strobel’s weaker arm, encouraging movement.

The stimulation is delivered as a tingling sensation, similar to the pins and needles feeling of your hands or feet falling asleep, said Ahad Behboodi, PhD, assistant professor in the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Department of Biomechanics.

Sensor caps help camp facilitators track brain activity and intent to move limbs. Facilitators can then administer gentle stimulation to encourage movement in participants’ weaker arm.

To be effective, campers need to repeat the same motion over and over. The virtual reality element is key in helping them from getting bored or fatigued, said Dr. Behboodi, who designed and implemented the BCI aspect of camp.

The goal of using BCI, he said, is to see better connection between the brain and the muscles.

“We want a healthy level of challenge — both physically and mentally — to get them to the next level from where they started at camp,” Dr. Behboodi said.

The MMI team will compare results of campers during the BCI-VR camp and the VR camp alone, said Andrea Cunha, PhD, assistant professor in the MMI Department of Physical Therapy. They measure and compare how both camps can help participants with the use of their arms and hands, such as bimanual coordination, dexterity and participation in daily activities.

“We use clinical measures to see how they use both hands together,” Dr. Cunha said. “Our goal is not only to make sure we’re getting similar or better results, but also to understand how we can best support children.”

Drs. Behboodi and Cunha received a three-year grant from the National Institutes of Health to continue the project.

The work builds on previous MMI work with VR games and includes key contributions from Ryan Thomas, clinical research associate, and Elizabeth Fortin, DPT.

Virtual reality games are designed to get campers to use both arms.

Individuals with cerebral palsy often have a weaker side. Camp is designed to get participants using both hands equally through the virtual reality games, but also in making snacks and playing on the playground.

“They get very good at doing things with one hand,” Dr. Cunha said. “At the beginning of camp, we have to prompt them to use that non-dominant hand in the games. As time passes, you see the use of that hand coming naturally.”

At his first HABIT VR camp in 2023, Strobel received plenty of reminders to use both hands as he played different video games.

Those reminders came fewer and farther between during this session. Strobel used both hands as he manipulated the handsets to shoot rockets at blocky looking aliens.

Strobel has gained more independence in the two years between HABIT VR camp sessions, his mother Heidi Reagan said.

He can tackle everyday tasks, such as using a shower chair or combing his own hair.

And during the last school year, he learned to use a power assist on his manual wheelchair to help him better steer through the halls. Now he’s graduated to using a power chair.

While all of Strobel’s therapies have helped with finding mobility in his weaker arm, HABIT camp helped to teach him how to better use his right hand, Reagan said.

“It gave him the ingenuity and totally boosted his confidence,” she said. “It came at a time when he needed it. It’s taught him how to benefit his daily life.”

Camp can also provide relief for parents and caregivers. In addition to HABIT VR camp, MMI offers summer and winter camps through the recreational therapy, physical therapy and occupational therapy departments.

Reagan said she always hoped to give her son a typical summer camp experience. HABIT VR camp has given Strobel the opportunity to follow his interests and connect with his peers.

MMI’s HABIT Virtual Reality Camp is similar to a traditional HABIT Camp, which is designed to get participants to use both hands to


About the University of Nebraska at Omaha

Located in one of America’s best cities to live, work and learn, the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is Nebraska’s premier metropolitan university. With more than 15,000 students enrolled in 200-plus programs of study, UNO is recognized nationally for its online education, graduate education, military friendliness and community engagement efforts. Founded in 1908, UNO has served learners of all backgrounds for more than 100 years and is dedicated to another century of excellence both in the classroom and in the community.

Follow UNO on Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube. 

  • News Sections:
  • UNO News Center
  • Maverick Daily
  • The Bullseye
  • Campus Events

News Sections

  • News Center
  • Maverick Daily
  • The Bullseye
  • Campus Events

Featured Stories

  • Start Strong, Mavericks!
  • UNO Sees Significant Summer Enrollment Growth in 2025
  • Mavericks Set to Move Into On-Campus Housing
  • From Adversity to Advocacy: Racquel Henderson’s Journey

Contact Us

If you have a story idea, news tip, or other question, please email the UNO News team at unonews@unomaha.edu.

About the Office of Strategic Marketing and Communications (MarComm)

Next Steps

  • Visit UNO
  • Request Information
  • Apply for Admission
  • The UNO Advantage
  • Our City (Omaha)

Just For You

  • Future Students
  • Current Students
  • Work at UNO
  • Faculty and Staff
  • A-Z List

Popular Services and Resources

  • my.unomaha.edu
  • Academic Calendar
  • Campus Buildings & Maps
  • Library
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Course Catalogs
  • Internships & Career Development
  • The Maverick Store
  • MavCARD Services
  • Military-Connected Resource Center
  • Speech Center
  • Writing Center
  • Human Resources
  • Center for Faculty Excellence

Affiliates

  • University of Nebraska System
  • NU Foundation
  • Buffett Early Childhood Institute
  • Daugherty Water for Food Institute
  • National Strategic Research Institute
  • Peter Kiewit Institute
  • Rural Prosperity Nebraska
  1. University Policies
  2. Privacy Statement
  3. Accessibility
  1. 402.554.2800

University of Nebraska Omaha
University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE, 68182
  • ©  
  • Emergency Information Alert
  • MavsReport

Social Media


Omaha Skyline

Our Campus. Otherwise Known as Omaha.

The University of Nebraska does not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and/or political affiliation in its education programs or activities, including admissions and employment. The University prohibits any form of retaliation taken against anyone for reporting discrimination, harassment, or retaliation for otherwise engaging in protected activity. Read the full statement.