The Conroe Independent School District's Academy of Science and Technology, located in The Woodlands, Texas is a magnet school in science and technology; it is also a member of the National Consortium of Specialized STEM Schools (NCSSS). It was founded at Oak Ridge High School in 1987 with the first graduates in 1991. The AST relocated to The Woodlands College Park High School in stages from 2005 to 2007. The first Headmaster in 1991 was Dr. Ron Laugen who was succeeded in 2007 by Dr. Susan Caffery. Math, science, and electives in these areas are taught mainly only to students from the Academy. All other courses are taken with the high school along with students who are not in the magnet program. Candidates are accepted by the Academy of Science and Technology following application, testing, and essay reviewing. Some candidates are interviewed by two faculty members before being accepted. For each class, 65 students are initially accepted, and ten are wait-listed. The size of each class at a given time is between 65 and 77 students. There are approximately 280 students in the Academy, selected from College Park High School, the Woodlands High School and Oak Ridge High School. Additional requirements Research and Problems Each AST student is required to complete a Research and Problems project for local credit each year. In the first year, all are required to do science fair. Many students proceed to the Science and Engineering Fair of Houston after district competition at the Sci:// Tech Exposition. The Academy of Science and Technology has a strong record of having students in all grades proceed to the ExxonMobil Texas State Science and Engineering Fair and the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Other options upperclassmen have for fulfilling their Research And Problems requirement include BEST Robotics, FIRST Robotics Competition, Quiz Bowl, Destination Imagination, Engineering Design Competition, Biotechnology Competition, and Envirothon Competition. Explorations 14 "Exploration credits" must be earned by each student for local credit to graduate from the AST. These credits are earned through several means: Job shadowing in a technical, scientific, or medical field; documented and researched exploration trips to places such as Alaska, the Galapagos Islands, The Grand Canyon, Colorado, Peru, and Belize; scientific lectures; short day trips to scientific laboratories or companies; college visits; attending approved lectures on scientific topics; and approved student-proposed explorations that are relevant to scientific fields. Internship All students are