Summer Research Academy for Theoretical and Computational Chemistry

 

The Summer Research Academy for Theoretical and Computational Chemistry (SRATCC) is an outreach program that encourages the broadening participation of high school students and teachers in theoretical and computational chemistry research. SRATCC aims at establishing a long-term outreach partnership between the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Texas Tech University (TTU) and high schools in the Lubbock area. While this program is open to all high school students and teachers, SRATCC emphasizes the education and training of high school participants from the local Hispanic community. SRATCC also tries to motivate the student participants to pursue post-secondary education in science and so acts as a recruiting program for undergraduate studies at TTU or at other universities.

 

SRATCC is organized by Assoc. Prof. Jorge A. Morales, with the direct assistance of his graduate and undergraduate students supported by or associated to his National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER grant. SRATCC also involves four to five faculty collaborators from the TTU Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry (See list below) who, along with the main organizer, mentor the program participants in their respective research groups.

 

SRATCC 2008:

 

The SRATCC 2008 was conducted in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at TTU from June 16 to July 11, 2008. In order to finance SRATCC 2008, Assoc. Prof. Jorge A. Morales, main organizer, wrote and obtained a $5,400 grant from the TTU Office of Institutional Diversity. In 2008, five students and one science teacher (See list below) were selected from Estacado High School, Lubbock, Texas, to work under the supervision of Assoc. Prof. Morales and the collaborating professors on their research projects supported by the National Science Foundation, the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund, and The Welch Foundation. To start SRATCC 2008, Assoc. Professor Jorge A. Morales made two recruiting presentations at Estacado High School (April and May of 2008), conducted the application and selection procedures for the participants, organized and presided over the opening lunch on June 16, 2008, and the closing dinner on July 10, 2008 (which included the participants’ parents as guests), organized and directed the participants’ research presentations in a public session on July 10, 2008, and supervised the daily evolution of the program. During SRATCC 2008, the five students and one teacher conducted their supervised research four hours a day (from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM), five days a week (Monday through Friday). Research stipends ($540 per student and $2,000 for the teacher) were provided to the participants. Prior to the first day of research, the participants were allowed to select one collaborating faculty to mentor their research according to their research interests. Each participant received his/her research project and instructions within his/her selected research group and worked under the direct supervision of the collaborating faculty and other competent group members. Each participant presented his/her research results in a 15-minute PowerPoint presentation during a public session at TTU on July 10, 2008; the session audience included members of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, members of other TTU departments, members and classmates of Estacado High School, and the participants’ parents and friends as guests.

 

      List of Participants at the SRATCC 2008:

 

      Main Organizer: Jorge A. Morales

      Collaborating Faculty: David Birney, Bill Hase, Greg Gellene, and Bill Poirier

      Student Assistants: Patrick McLaurin, Mayra Miranda, and Melissa Alvarado

     

      High School Participants:

 

      Mr. Greg Burnham (Science Teacher, Estacado High School, Morales Group)

 

      Mr. Justin Bedford (Student, Estacado High School, Gellene Group)

      Mr. George Cervantez (Student, Estacado High School, Poirier Group)

      Ms. Brittany Gomez (Student, Estacado High School, Morales Group)

      Ms. Stephanie Munoz (Student, Estacado High School, Hase Group)

      Ms. Rynna Wanberg (Student, Estacado High School, Birney Group)

 

The participants’ research projects and their presentations were:

 

  1.  Mr. Greg Burnham (Morales Group): Computer simulations including computer animations (movies) of the H+ + H2O reaction at ELab=46 eV via direct CS dynamics. Presentation Title: “H+  + H2O@46ev”

 

  1. Mr. Justin Bedford (Gellene Group): Modeling of potential energy surfaces in boron-hydrogen compounds. Presentation Title: “The B+/H2 Interaction”

 

  1.  Mr. George Cervantez (Poirier Group): Modeling of harmonic and anharmonic potential energy surfaces. Presentation Title: “Modeling of harmonic and anharmonic potential energy surfaces”

 

  1. Ms. Brittany Gomez (Morales Group): Computer simulations including computer animations (movies) of the H+ + H2 reaction at ELab=30 eV via direct CS dynamics. Presentation Title: ”H+ + H2”

 

  1. Ms. Stephanie Munoz (Hase Group): Simulation of Ar + CH4 and peptide + diamond surface collisions. Presentation Title: ”Chemical Dynamics Simulation of Energy Transfer in CID and SID”

 

  1. Ms. Rynna Wanberg (Birney Group): Electronic structure calculations of organic molecules for group symmetry studies. Presentation title: “Allyl Imidate Geometry Optimization”

 

 

SRATCC 2009:

 

The SRATCC 2009 was conducted in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at TTU from June 15 to July 10, 2009. In order to finance SRATCC 2009, Assoc. Prof. Jorge A. Morales, main organizer, wrote and obtained a $5,400 grant from the TTU College of Arts & Sciences. In 2009, five students and one science teacher (See list below) were selected from Estacado High School, Lubbock, Texas, to work under the supervision of Assoc. Prof. Morales and the collaborating professors on their research projects supported by the National Science Foundation, the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund, and The Welch Foundation. To start SRATCC 2009, Assoc. Professor Jorge A. Morales made two recruiting presentations at Estacado High School (March and May of 2009), conducted the application and selection procedures for the participants, organized and presided over the opening lunch on June 15, 2009 and the closing dinner on July 9, 2009 (which included the participants’ parents as guests), organized and directed the participants’ research presentations in a public session on July 9, 2009, and supervised the daily evolution of the program. During SRATCC 2009, the five students and one teacher conducted their supervised research four hours a day (from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM), five days a week (Monday through Friday). Research stipends ($540 per student and $2,000 for the teacher) were provided to the participants. Prior to the first day of research, the participants were allowed to select one collaborating faculty to mentor their research according to their research interests. Each participant received his/her research project and instructions within his/her selected research group and worked under the direct supervision of the collaborating faculty and other competent group members. Each participant presented his/her research results in a 15-minute PowerPoint presentation during a public session at TTU on July 9, 2009; the session audience included members of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, members of other TTU departments, members and classmates of Estacado High School, and the participants’ parents and friends as guests.

 

 

      List of Participants at the SRATCC 2009:

 

      Main Organizer: Jorge A. Morales

      Collaborating Faculty: David Birney, Bill Hase, Greg Gellene, Ed. Quitevis, and Bill Poirier

      Student Assistant: Patrick McLaurin.

     

      High School Participants:

 

      Ms. Amber Allen (Science Teacher, Estacado High School, Poirier Group)

 

      Ms. Rodneysha Benson (Student, Estacado High School, Quitevis Group)

      Mr. Blake Ellis (Student, Estacado High School, Gellene Group)

      Ms. Harley DeLeon (Student, Estacado High School, Morales Group)

      Mr. Quentin Patterson (Student, Estacado High School, Birney Group)

      Ms. Princella Rosemond (Student, Estacado High School, Hase Group)

 

The participants’ research projects and their presentations were:

 

  1. Ms. Amber Allen (Poirier Group): Electronic structure calculations of carbon nanotubes. Presentation Title: “The Binding Energies of Hydrogen With Various Single-Walled Nanotubes”

 

  1. Ms. Rodneysha Benson (Quitevis Group): Spectroscopic measurements (Experimental Physical Chemistry Research). Presentation Title: “Bleaching of Dye in a Glass Forming Liquid”.

 

  1.  Mr. Blake Ellis (Gellene Group): Development of a web-based general chemistry manual. Presentation Title: “Introduction of a Web-Based General Chemistry Laboratory”

 

  1. Ms. Harley DeLeon (Morales Group): Computer simulations including computer animations (movies) of the H+ + CO reaction at ELab=30 eV via direct CS dynamics. Presentation Title: ”Electron Nuclear Dynamics of H+ + CO Collisions at ELab=30 eV”.

 

  1. Mr. Quentin Patterson (Birney Group): Electronic structure calculations of organic molecules for group symmetry studies. Presentation title: “Pseudopericyclic Molecules Allyl Sulfur Imidate (ASI) Geometry Optimization”

 

  1. Ms. Princella Rosemond (Hase Group): Electronic structure calculations of organic molecules for group symmetry studies. Presentation title: “Semiempirical Direct Dynamics Calculation for Hyperthermal Unimolecular Dissociation of Protonated Glycine”