Research Organization
Research Organization (RO) is committed to helping TAMS students excel in research by improving their communication, presentation, and execution skills. We connect you to university resources, research competitions (TJAS, TJSHS, Intel ISEF-affiliated Science Fairs, & more) and volunteering in the community via Aspire Exposition and Mentorship programs. Join us and change the world!
| Topic(s) | Research |
|---|---|
| Abbrev. | RO |
| Advised | Yes |
| Execs | President: Neel Shanmugam
Competition Directors: Shreyas Shridharan, Carly Yang Aspire Exposition Director: Kelly Kim Aspire Mentorship Director: Cindy Liang |
| Event(s) | TJAS, TJSHS, Research Symposium, Science Fair |
| Website | https://www.tamsro.com/ |
| Link | |
| tamsresearch@gmail.com |
Competitions
Fairs
Notable competitions and competition-like events include TAMS Fair, a showcase for TAMS students to present their research or artworks; and Science Fair, which includes the Fort Worth Regional Science and Engineering Fair (FWRSEF), the Texas Science and Engineering Fair (TXSEF), and the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF).
Science Fair is an incredibly unique opportunity a student can take to share their findings with the world and learn about the research that other young students may be conducting. Through competing in science fairs, not only does one learn, but they can also compete and continue to excel throughout regional to state to national levels, seeing how they stack up compared to others like them. TAMS' Research Organization is your guide to science fair, helping to centralize every resource and logistic for everyone to compete at the best of their ability.
Novel Competitions
In 2021, RO also started sponsoring "Novel Competitions" such as Genes in Space, Physics Unlimited Explorer Competition (PUEC), MathWorks Math Modeling Challenge, and Beamline for Schools (BL4S). That year, Ted Kwee-Bintoro, Kapil Yadav, Neil Agrawal, and Sachin Kathiresan received an honorable mention at the Mathworks Math Modeling Challenge.
Research Scholarships
In addition to the above competitions, the TAMS Research Organization works closely with Dr. James Duban, the director of UNT’s Office for Nationally Competitive Scholarships. Dr. Duban works closely with the TAMS family as a mentor for the Barry Goldwater Scholarship, the Regeneron Science Talent Search, the Udall Scholarship, and many more.
Volunteering
Aspire Mentorship
A mentor is one who empowers others to hold a goal and helps them achieve it. This is the philosophy behind the TAMS RO’s Aspire Mentorship Program, which strives to ignite a passion for exploring the unknown within younger students of the community, as well as continuing to foster a passion for research and discovery within both TAMS students and the younger generation. TAMS students involved within the Aspire Mentorship program visit Calhoun Middle School every Monday for four months in order to guide middle school students with their scientific investigations.
These talented and promising young students exercise the scientific method, view scientific phenomena in action, and are mentored to be able to communicate their results effectively at the Fort Worth Regional Science and Engineering Fair, where they can learn about the process of research from their peers and experienced judges, continuing to improve, and advance through the rounds of the fair.
The supportive and lasting bond formed between the mentor and the mentee during this process is paramount. Each middle school student participating in the program is paired with a select TAMS student, carefully selected by an experienced panel after applying to become a mentor, so any students, parents, or teachers can rest assured that the mentors will be able to do their job effectively, with great potential to teach and guide their mentees through the experimentation process. By participating in this exchange, TAMS students are able to understand the roles of being an effective mentor, and the mentees are able to begin to identify where their research interests may lie. The benefits for involved TAMS students extend far beyond serving as a mentor; the program allows TAMS students to learn in different ways by interacting with the students and teachers and enduring various conflicts and challenges throughout the process, building communication and problem solving skills. By enabling young students with fresh outlooks and creative minds to conduct research in a community that could benefit from that very research, RO’s Aspire Mentorship helps to structure the framework for the next generation of scientists to make a contribution towards the realm of innovation and discovery.
Aspire Exposition
The TAMS Research Organization’s Aspire Exposition program aims to supplement elementary school students’ classroom learning with hands-on experiments that contextualize their knowledge, creating a passion and interest for the science. Through interactive powerpoints and enjoyable experiments, young students learn the answers to many questions concerning why a phenomena occurs. By allowing young individuals of the Denton community to immerse themselves within the fields of earth science, physics, geology, and other disciplines, at a young age, Aspire Exposition hopes to plant a seed of curiosity within the blossoming minds of our community’s future scientists.
SciVids
SciVids is a collaborative volunteer opportunity with JETS, RO's favorite sister club at TAMS. Volunteers have the chance to perform experiments, teach science topics, design and edit videos, and provide a fun science outlet for hundreds of kids who are stuck at home. Check out the videos that volunteers have made in Fall of 2020:
- Surface Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhdW_Pe47zo
- Forces and Magnetism - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idvWpo_hU04
- Weather Cycles - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W75P-FekDRE
- Biology - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbKQHJgEJxI
- Forces and Motion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkCwF_UUX2c
- Earth Sciences - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-rZ59B0wPI
- Light - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ba7NJP8giho
Execs
2021-2022
President: Neel Shanmugam
Competitions Directors: Shreyas Shridharan & Carly Yang
Aspire Exposition Director: Kelly Kim
Aspire Mentorship Director: Cindy Liang
2020-2021
President: Shrika Eddula
Competition Directors: Sai Sarnala & Naman Mehndiratta
Aspire Exposition Director: Dave Banerjee
Aspire Mentorship Director: Shakthi Prabhakar
2019-2020
President: Lucy Kim
Competition Directors: Julia Camacho & Kevin Yao
Aspire Exposition Director: Anvith Kowtha
Aspire Mentorship Director: Shreya Tamma
2018-2019
President: Sangita Vasikaran
Competition Directors: Ritik Patnaik & Aditya Paul
Aspire Exposition Director: Neha Kalakuntla
Aspire Mentorship Director: Shreya Hari
2017-2018
President: Karen Liu
Competition Directors: Ajay Panda & Michael Shen
Aspire Exposition Director: Megan Hseu
Aspire Mentorship Director: Sarah Zou