WKU News

Gatton Alumni Trivan Menezes (’19, Oldham County HS), Camuel Hart (’18, Anderson County HS), and Donald “D.J.” Price (’16, Marion County HS) recently had their research, “A Complete List of Minimal Diagrams of an Oriented Alternating Knot,” published the Journal Knot Theory and its Ramifications. They conducted the research while at The Gatton Academy with now-retired Professor Claus Ernst from the WKU Department of Mathematics. The research “created a way to form a list of the simplest forms of certain mathematical knots.” 

Menezes is currently a junior at Princeton studying Computer Science and will return to Microsoft next summer as a software engineering intern. He plans to start a career in the tech industry after graduation. Menezes states, "When I was recruited to join Professor Ernst’s knot-theory research group in the winter of my junior year at Gatton, I would never have expected the impact the experience would have on my academic and professional career. The hours spent understanding theoretical mathematics concepts and constructing new algorithms led to insurmountable growth in my mathematical ability and algorithmic problem solving. Furthermore, the conference presentations and daily conversations about the project brought about significant strides in my ability to communicate and simplify complex ideas into accessible terms. At Princeton, these skills have paid large dividends. I came into my computer science coursework with an advantage due to my algorithmic knowledge, and my communication skills have enabled me to take on numerous leadership and mentorship roles on campus. To this day, my research experience at Gatton remains one of the most beneficial activities I have experienced, and I am proud that our work has been published." 

About The Gatton Academy: Established in 2007, The Gatton Academy is Kentucky’s first residential two-year program for gifted and talented junior and seniors. The Gatton Academy’s students enroll as juniors and are full-time WKU students pursuing their interests in advanced science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The Gatton Academy has been named to Jay Mathews’ list of top-performing schools with elite students for 11 consecutive appearances and received the National Consortium for Secondary STEM School’s Innovation Partnership Award.

Contact:Cheryl Kirby-Stokes,  (270) 745-3613 or  academy@wku.edu