Last Thursday, Emerson’s Independent Study and Mentorship (ISM) class attended the first districtwide ISM event of the year, the Business Symposium at Panther Creek. During the event, ISM students from Frisco schools were able to participate in networking sessions with professionals, practice their interview skills, and brainstorm potential research topics.
In ISM, students conduct research and interviews on their chosen topic of study in order to select a mentor and gain real-world experience. Throughout the year, Emerson ISM students participate in a variety of events including a district-wide research showcase at The Star and a final presentation night on campus, where they give a 30-minute presentation on the work they’ve done throughout the year.
This is the second year that Emerson has had an ISM program and the first with both ISM 2 and ISM 1 students. The program has grown from just 8 people last year to over 20 this year.
“What excites me about having a bigger ISM program is that as ISM 2 we’re able to act as mentors for the ISM 1 students,” ISM 2 student Michelle Eu said. “I think having more people creates a sense of community within the classroom. We’ve grown a lot closer and I think I’m glad to just have more people to collaborate with.”
To the new ISM 1 students, the business symposium was an opportunity to finally apply the skills they’ve been learning through their first few weeks in the classroom through speaking with professionals during networking and interview sessions. Alongside getting contacts with adults working in a similar field for mentorship and interviews, students were also able to get a headstart on planning their original work and final product.
“I have big goals and aspirations for my journey in ISM and the professionals helped me understand how I could achieve these in a more manageable way while also giving me tips on how to expand on my research,” ISM 1 student Tanvi Sethia said.
ISM 2 students had a different experience this year, focusing more on being on the opposite side of the event.
“We got to practice interviewing the ISM 1 students and help with the overall organization of the event which was definitely a rewarding experience,” Eu said.
Post symposium, students now have the daunting task of creating an original work with all of the research they’ve done so far, all while reaching out to professionals in their respective fields for interviews and a potential mentorship.
“Since I have an internship with the professor that mentored me last year, I want to try and expand my research by implementing skills I learned last year like analyzing data and doing more primary research,” Eu said.
This hard work will soon pay off, as students will get to showcase their research at a district-wide event at The Star Stadium in March, alongside ISM students from the district.
“Last year, It was a great opportunity for me to be able to showcase my work from last year which was public health,” said Eu. “And I also met a lot of people from different schools and we were able to bounce ideas off of each other and share our work to gather inspiration for the next year of ISM.”
However, before this year’s ISM batch’s debut at The Star, they have to spend the next few months working towards fulfilling their research goals. While it’s bound to be a long process, ISM students are excited to take on this challenge.
“The class definitely requires a lot of hard work and persistence but I really enjoy working with Ms. McCutchen and my peers motivate me and drive me to do my best,” Sethia said.
