On Jan. 13, the Westwood Research Academy will be hosting their very first meeting, sponsored by Ms. Jordan Seidl.

In this new club, the members will be conducting research experiments for University of Texas (UT) Austin, later sending the gathered information to UT. The members will be conducting a lab on Bioprospecting and the Isolation of Biologically Active Natural Products from Endophytes, which is also a freshman class at UT.

“We will be looking at various endophytes present in plants in the Austin area, and finding the biologically active compounds that are present,” President Keval Patel ‘17 said.

Along with conducting experiments for UT, the club will be performing local research experiments of their own choosing.

“The organization provides students the opportunity to apply what they have learned in their courses during hands-on experiments and gain college-level research experience,” Patel said.

Members of the club will be learning research techniques, and will gain more detailed knowledge of the explored research topic.

“We will be dividing the organization into small lab groups so that each member in the organization gets a more individualized experience when conducting research,” Patel said. “From research, you grow not only scientifically, but also personally as you gain creativity, curiosity, time-management, and analytical skill.”

During the first meeting, the members will be introduced to the main research area which the club will be exploring.

“We will also give out more information on when the meetings will be held,” Patel said.

After the club kicks off, meeting dates will change depending on what stage the experiment which they are working on. They might occur anywhere from at least once a week to more frequently.

The Westwood Research Academy’s first meeting will be held Tuesday, Jan. 13th, from 4:20 to 5:00 p.m. in Ms. Seidl’s room (D2312). Email [email protected] with any additional questions.