 The institute integrates a visiting scholar with the relevant department endeavors and with related specialists in adjoining fields.Ten years in the making, TIAS was the brainchild of John L. Junkins, professor of aerospace engineering at Texas A&M.His ideas for a strategy of bringing more top scholars to Texas A&M were adopted by A&M's administration in 2010, with support from the university and the Chancellor of the Texas A&M System.