Frequently Used Tools:

• Webmail  | 
• Tmail  | 
• Online@UT  | 
• A-Z Index

Search The University of Tennessee:

search: Campus People System

College of Arts & Sciences »

Welcome! » Academic Outreach » UT Pre-Collegiate Research Scholars Program

Main Navigation:

• Advising Services
• Academic Outreach
• Academic Programs
• Administration
• Communications
  • Faculty Speakers Bureau
  • CEESTEM Initiatives
  • Faculty & Staff
  • P-12 Teacher Resources
  • Scholarship of Outreach
  • Service Learning

UT Pre-Collegiate Research Scholars Program

See Also: Faculty Mentor Registration

The College of Arts And Sciences and the College of Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville are partnering with two Knox County Schools to initiate a pilot program--the UT Pre-Collegiate Research Scholars Program.  Farragut High School and Fulton High School seniors working under the direction of their high school teacher mentor are awarded scholarships to work with faculty mentors in UT research laboratories.  The teacher mentor at Farragut High School is Ms. Kristin Baksa; the teacher/mentor at Fulton High School is Ms. Mary Jane Kirkham.  The program’s goal is to develop a model for hosting high school students in UT research laboratories so that they may experience the excitement of scientific research and engage in their own original research.  The program is currently open only to students of these two high schools; however, it may be expanded in future years to accommodate participation of students from others schools.

Selected rising high school students may participate in the pilot program upon the recommendation of the collaborating teacher mentor at Farragut High School’s Science Department, Ms. Kristin Baksa, or the collaborating teacher mentor at Fulton High School, Ms. Mary Jane Kirkham.  Students interested in participating must indicate their interest to Ms. Baksa or Ms. Kirkham and may not participate in this pilot program without recommendation and approval from the designated teacher mentor at each school. 

Students participating in the UT Pre-Collegiate Research Scholars Program will be assigned a faculty research mentor from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, who will lead the student in his or her laboratory research, providing the student with the opportunity to experience research in a university setting.

The pilot program will initially involve two colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Engineering.

• Dr. Lynn Champion will coordinate the recruitment of faculty mentors and placement of high school student researchers in Arts and Sciences.
• Dr. Masood Parang will coordinate the recruitment of faculty mentors and placement of high school student researchers in Engineering.

Participating departments in the College of Arts and Sciences are:

• Division of Biology (BCMB, Microbiology, EEB)
• Department of Chemistry
• Department of Earth and Planetary Science
• Department of Mathematics
• Department of Physics and Astronomy

Participating departments in the College of Engineering are:

• Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Mechanical, Aerospace and Bio-medical Engineering
• Industrial and Information Engineering
• Chemical Engineering
• Nuclear Engineering
• Material Science and Engineering
• Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Bio-systems Engineering

Enrollment and Course Credit

To address liability issues associated with the University hosting the high school students and UT faculty and graduate students working with the students in UT’s laboratories, each student must be enrolled in a credit-bearing course.  If the high school students are enrolled in University classes, then faculty and students are working with them in the course of their regular duties and are insured by the Tennessee Claims Commission and represented by the UT General Counsel.  High School students will not have personal liability insurance or health insurance unless they or their parents arrange independently for such benefits.

Student participants in this program must complete an admission application to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and register for 1-9 hours credit in a designated course in University Studies. Ms. Baksa at Farragut High School and Ms. Kirkham at Fulton High School will indicate to the students the appropriate course and section number for each term of their participation.

For the pilot program ,  high school students will be registered for 1 credit hour per term; however, the credit hour assigned does not limit the number of hours a student may work in the laboratory. That arrangement will be determined by the UT faculty mentor, the teacher mentor, and the student.

Tuition/Fees

Tuition for participants in this pilot program will be paid through faculty grant funding or scholarship assistance from the participating colleges.  Support for each student includes, tuition and fees, student I.D. card, library access, net I.D. and a parking permit. Students may NOT earn a stipend and course credit simultaneously.

Participants in the UT Pre-Collegiate Research Scholars Program will be commuting students.  A special I.D. will be assigned to the high school students to differentiate their enrollment status from those of regular UT students.

Faculty from the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Engineering who wish to serve as research mentors must complete the Online Form, which records the prospective faculty mentor’s contact information and a brief description of the laboratory experience he or she is willing to make available to high school student researchers through the mentoring program.  A faculty member completing the form should indicate which terms she/he is willing to host students in the laboratory (Summer, Fall, Spring, or year round), how many students the lab will host, how many hours a student would be expected to spend in the lab each week, and whether or not grant funds are available to pay tuition for the student(s).  Dr. Lynn Champion in the College of Arts and Sciences and Dr. Masood Parang in the College of Engineering  collect and coordinate these submissions and collaborate with Ms. Baksa at Farragut High School and Ms. Kirkham at Fulton High School to place students with faculty mentors based on common interests and other relevant factors. 

Process for Mentoring Experience

At the beginning of the project, each student will meet with the UT faculty mentor and the teacher mentor to outline the project and expectations.  A written 1- to 2-page outline of project goals and expectations should emerge from this meeting.  The project should correspond with the agreed-upon number of hours per week and the duration of the placement (i.e. number of semesters and number of hours worked on project).

While it is understood that student instruction will involve participation of laboratory graduate students and post-doctoral associates, the mentor is directly responsible for working with the student and monitoring his or her progress.  Weekly meetings between students and their sponsoring mentor are highly recommended.

To ensure communication with all parties involved, the mentor, student, and sponsoring high school teacher should meet at least twice each term; the first meeting is at the beginning of the project, and the second meeting is at the midterm (8 weeks) to monitor progress.

At the end of the term, all Pre-Collegiate Research Scholars are expected to prepare an abstract of their research project,  to prepare a poster presentation of their research, and to write a research paper and submit it for presentation.  

Students are encouraged to submit a research paper to the Tennessee Junior Science and Humanities Symposium and to submit posters for science fair competitions.