Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science Collection

The Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS) is a unique residential program for high school-aged Texas students who are high achievers and interested in mathematics and science. While living in McConnell Hall, students in this two-year program complete a rigorous academic curriculum of college coursework at the University of North Texas (UNT). This collection features a series of documents, letters, memos, and the TAMS yearbook, The Witness.

About the Physical Collection

This collection is arranged in four series: Series 1) Publications, Series 2) Administrative Records, Series 3) Photographs, and Series 4) Oversize. The publications in the first series mostly contain brochures, newsletters, programs, yearbooks, and flyers concerning TAMS. Whereas the administrative records in the second series contain documents relating to the early founding, establishment, and running of TAMS. These documents include correspondence, memorandums, proposals, articles and newspaper clippings, budgets, executive summaries, research, and handbooks.

About the Digital Collection

The Digital Collections represents a sample of materials found in the larger collection, including publications, administrative records, brochures, newsletters, programs, yearbooks, and photographs of the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS).

Collection Historical Note

The Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science, also known as TAMS, is an accelerated program for high school students who wish to acquire credit for college courses while still attending high school. Through the efforts taken by Jim Miller, former dean of UNT's College of Arts and Science, this selective academic program for gifted high school students got its start in the late 1980's as an effort to address a shortfall in the math and science test scores of American students. It began in 1987 when a bill, HB2079, was passed by the 70th Texas Legislature and signed by Governor William B. Clements, Jr. Following the establishment of TAMS, its first class began in the fall of 1988 and was, at that time, the first residential program for gifted high school math and science students in the nation. Today, only two hundred applicants are accepted into the program each year with about one hundred seventy TAMS students graduating annually.