{"id":29562,"date":"2021-06-10T05:30:50","date_gmt":"2021-06-10T10:30:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.discoverclarksville.com\/articles\/?p=29562"},"modified":"2021-06-09T23:54:16","modified_gmt":"2021-06-10T04:54:16","slug":"apsus-governors-school-brings-high-schoolers-from-across-state-to-campus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.discoverclarksville.com\/articles\/2021\/06\/10\/apsus-governors-school-brings-high-schoolers-from-across-state-to-campus\/","title":{"rendered":"APSU’s Governor\u2019s School brings high schoolers from across state to campus"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AustinClarksville, TN<\/strong> – The Governor\u2019s School for Computational Physics returned for the 13th<\/sup> straight year to Austin Peay State University (APSU) this week, but this year brought something new \u2013 a sense of normalcy.<\/p>\n

\"Austin<\/a>

Austin Peay State University’s Governor\u2019s School. (APSU)<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

Last year\u2019s Governor\u2019s School was entirely online because of the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic. This year, the school\u2019s students returned to campus.<\/p>\n

Nearly 40 high-achieving high school juniors and seniors from across the state will live on campus for three weeks, enjoying a residential college experience while earning four college credit hours.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally the point of Governor\u2019s School is the interaction,\u201d said Dr. B. Alex King, chair of APSU\u2019s Department of Physics, Engineering, and Astronomy, which hosts the school. \u201cGovernor\u2019s School students are among the most motivated students at each of their high schools, and they probably haven\u2019t had a chance to be in a room with 38 other like-minded students.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s that interplay between the students that is interesting at Governor\u2019s School,\u201d he added. \u201cWe cover a tremendous amount of material because the students can pick things up quickly because they help each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Austin<\/a>

Austin Peay State University’s Governor\u2019s School. (APSU)<\/p><\/div>\n

Not everything has returned to normal, though. Students normally make two field trips during Governor\u2019s School \u2013 one to the National Space Science Technology Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and the other to the National Center for Computational Sciences at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.<\/p>\n

Because the pandemic has disrupted those trips this year, several presenters from those centers will speak virtually to the students.<\/p>\n

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[470center]<\/p>\n

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Austin Peay alumni Billy Teets, director of Vanderbilt University\u2019s Dyer Observatory, and Dr. Adrian Parker, chief engineer of the U.S. Navy\u2019s Missile Energy Systems Branch, also will speak to the students.<\/p>\n

What is Governor\u2019s School? <\/h3>\n

The state\u2019s Department of Education offers 11 programs to juniors and seniors across Tennessee. Topics cover science, the arts, business, technology, humanities, international studies and teaching. <\/p>\n

The schools also introduce Tennessee\u2019s high-achieving students to the value and resources the state\u2019s public universities have to offer, King said. <\/p>\n

\"Austin<\/a>

Austin Peay State University’s Governor\u2019s School. (APSU)<\/p><\/div>\n

The state provides scholarships to all the students to cover the costs of tuition, room, and board.<\/p>\n

Austin Peay State University hosts the Governor\u2019s School for Computational Physics, which is an introduction to computational problems in physics and engineering.<\/p>\n

[320left]The students earn four credit hours \u2013 for Physics 2500 and Physics 2501 \u2013 by completing the school.<\/p>\n

Dr. Daniel Mayo of the APSU Department of Mathematics and Statistics helps King teach the courses.<\/p>\n

Current Austin Peay State University students and recent graduates help to mentor the Governor\u2019s School students and lead extracurricular activities. This year\u2019s mentors are:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Philip Long, a recent physics graduate currently in the Master of Arts in Teaching program.<\/li>\n
  • Ken Shipley, a recent engineering physics graduate.<\/li>\n
  • Mackenzie Carr, a math major in actuarial science.<\/li>\n
  • April Torres, a physics major in astrophysics.<\/li>\n
  • Austin Harnage, a recent physics graduate attending the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in medical physics this fall.<\/li>\n
  • Meleah Lanier, a physics major.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The school runs through June 25th. <\/strong><\/p>\n

    Exploding hydrogen balloons<\/h3>\n
    \n