2017 TANMS Young Scholars Program Culminates with the Dedication of the Elijah S. Robinson Award
Post date: Aug 11, 2017 5:31:40 PM
For the second year in running, high school teacher and RET program participant, Eric Mattsson, brings to UCLA a team of six high school students from Westchester Enriched Sciences Magnet to participate in the TANMS Young Scholars Program (YSP). Team members Sydney Balkcom, Corey Kizzee, Jai Lewis, Thailiya Thomas, Robert Nwoye, and Naim Wright worked under the guidance of graduate student mentor, Andres Chavez, in Professor Gregory Carman's lab on the research project titled "Effect of Strain on Ferromagnetic Resonance in Ni Elements". Aside from research, the young scholars learned about college life during a discussion panel with undergraduate researchers participating in the TANMS REU program, explored electromagnetism through the hands-on TANMS Science Modules, and attended a field trip to Los Angeles Exhibition Park, California African American Museum and the California Science Center. The Young Scholars Program culminated with the students providing a team oral presentation on their research project and participated in a "Perfect Pitch" competition designed by Mr. Mattsson where teams presented their ideas on how to resolve negative environmental impacts of pesticides by using TANMS multiferroic technology.
The YSP Culmination ended with a very special presentation of the first Elijah S. Robinson Award for Inspiration, Integrity and Scholarly Promise in Engineering to rising junior, Naim Wright. Naim has a strong interest in STEM and has goals for the medical field. His collaborative disposition, academic diligence and competency is exemplary for what this award recognizes.
About Elijah S. Robinson
Elijah S. Robinson joined the TANMS family one year ago as part of the 2016 Young Scholars Program. He worked under the mentorship of graduate student, Xiang Li, in Professor Kang Wang’s group at UCLA Department of Electrical Engineering. He was a rising senior from Susan Miller Dorsey Senior High School at the time of his participation and was set to attend California State University, Dominguez Hills, this coming fall, majoring in Computer Engineering. Sadly, on June 27, 2017, Elijah's life was lost tragically. Elijah's spirit epitomizes the TANMS principles and is best expressed by his own words: “Because I understand how important technology is to this world […] I have a big plan for myself and will pursue it and give it my all. I’m fully aware of the hard work it will take and I know it’s all worth it in the long run. […] I'm driven to become a software engineer and take advantage of all opportunities that are available to me. Opportunities like TANMS YSP is what I'm searching for and I will love to be a part of it and grow as a STEAM prodigy.”
Elijah exemplified TANMS' values and vision in his generosity and compassion for others, and in his resilience and persistence in the pursuit of higher education and engineering career goals. In his memory, TANMS dedicates the Elijah S. Robinson Award for Inspiration, Integrity and Scholarly Promise in Engineering.
