Student Profile - Tyler Doiron

Engineering major finds springboard to LU through TALH

When Tyler Doiron enrolled at Lamar University through the Texas Academy of Leadership in the Humanities (TALH) program, she knew it would be a unique experience.Tyler Doiron stands in engineering building

TALH is one of only two residential programs in Texas that gives high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to start college early and earn 60 or more hours of college credit.

“This program was very enriching,” Doiron said. “I would definitely recommend it to students who are looking for a fulfilling experience.”

The Vidor native moved to Buna, Texas, at age 10 and completed her freshman, sophomore and the first half of her junior year at Buna High School before coming to Lamar University. “I first heard about TALH when one of my friends told me she wanted to go,” Doiron said. “I thought it was a great opportunity, so I submitted my application and the TALH director told me I could go ahead and get in one semester sooner.”

“My parents supported me because they realized it’d be good for me,” she said. “I was taking my required courses through a college class instead of a high school class, but it taught me how to take more responsibility.”

Now Doiron has completed the TALH program and is a full-time college student at Lamar with a double major in electrical engineering and mathematics. “I chose to stay at Lamar University for so many reasons,” she said. “Lamar is just a wonderful school. The teachers and programs are great, especially within the College of Engineering. And the classes are smaller. You often have multiple courses with the same people for several semesters. This creates a close-knit group of acquaintances and friends.”

Doiron said that she is grateful to have been selected as a Mirabeau Presidential Scholar, but that the financial assistance did not influence her decision to attend Lamar. “I knew I wanted to complete my education here,” she said.

Doiron is involved on campus as a tutor for the LU Student Advising and Retention Services (STARS). She mainly tutors mathematics, physics and chemistry. She said that she has learned a lot about the different ways students learn and how she can use her learning style to succeed.

Additionally, Doiron plans to get involved in research into Brain Computer Interface with the Phillip M. Drayer Department of Electrical Engineering.

 “It would be a great opportunity to get serious about this research,” she said. “It has many real-world applications. And since it is at its beginning stages, it would be awesome to have the chance to make groundbreaking discoveries in that area of research.”

Doiron dedicates a lot of her time to volunteering for nonprofit organizations such as the Humane Society of Southeast Texas and Stable Spirit, which provides equine-assisted therapy in Rose City. She began volunteering with those organizations through TALH, where she also did volunteer work at an elementary school to teach English as a Second Language (ESL).

“Looking back, I wouldn’t have changed anything,” she said. “TALH is not only about college classes; it is about getting involved and learning to successfully interact with people that are different than you in so many ways.”

Doiron met people from all over the world with contrasting beliefs and views. “TALH’s slogan was right; it truly developed my heart and mind,” she said.

Doiron graduated from TALH in May and anticipates graduating from Lamar in May 2016. “Hopefully, it will take me three years to get my college degree,” she said.

She said the best advice she ever received was, “Enjoy life. Enjoy what you do. Life should be fun. This encompasses your job, your hobbies, your studies, how you spend your free-time and who you spend it with. But also do what you feel is important.”

Her dream job would be to work for the space program, with either NASA or Boeing. She would love to travel into space. Doiron said she is interested in learning more about opportunities at Lamar to participate in research and experiments related to space including possibly flying in a reduced-gravity aircraft.

“My favorite thing about the space programs and space travel is that they have the ability to teach us more about our universe,” she said. “I really want to work in this area because I want to contribute to all of the progressions that we will make in space science.”

But for now, Doiron seems to be following her friend’s advice and enjoying her life at Lamar. “My plans for the future are up for grabs,” she said. “I’m going anywhere life takes me.”