CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
2000 MISSOURI SECTION AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY TEACHING
OF MATHEMATICS
Nominations for the 2000 Missouri Section Award for Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics are now being accepted. The award recognizes teachers of mathematics at the post-secondary level who have been widely recognized as extraordinarily successful.
The Section Selection Committee will review all nominations and determine which candidate, if any, best fulfills the guidelines given below. (If no nominated candidate is found to have outstanding qualifications, then the award will not be given.) The Missouri Section awardee will be honored at the Spring 2000 meeting of the Section and will be widely recognized and acknowledged within the Section.
The awardee will also be the official Section candidate for the pool of Section awardees from which the national recipients of the MAA Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo Awards for Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics will be selected except that one of the national winners may be selected from another source. There will be at most three national awardees, each of whom will be honored at the national MAA meeting in January 2000 and receive a $1,000 check and a certificate.
Eligibility
Nominees must satisfy the following criteria:
Guidelines for Nomination
The nominees should
*"teaching" is to be interpreted in its broadest sense, not necessarily limited to classroom teaching (it may include activities such as preparing students for mathematical competitions at the college level, for example, the Putnam Prize Competition or the Mathematical Contest in Modeling, or attracting students to become majors in a mathematical science or to become Ph.D. candidates).
**"influence beyond their own institution" can take many forms, including demonstrated lasting impact on alumni, influence on the profession through curricular revisions in college mathematics teaching with national impact, influential innovative books on the teaching of college mathematics, etc.
Procedures
Glen Haddock
10252 CO RD 3010
Rolla, MO 65401-7752
Minutes of Missouri Section Executive Committee Meeting
April 9, 1999 Rockhurst College
The Executive Committee meeting of the Missouri Section was held in Richardson 202 on the campus of
Rockhurst College. Chair John Koelzer called the meeting to order at 11:38 a.m. The following members
were present:
Chair John Koelzer (Rockhurst)
Past-Chair Jim Downing (SMSU)
Governor Al Tinsley (CMSU)
Newsletter Editor Vic Gummersheimer (SEMO)
Secretary-Treasurer Susan Callahan (Cottey)
National President Tom Banchoff joined the meeting when he arrived on campus.
1. John Koelzer announced that a NExT-type activity was included in the meeting program. Plans were made very recently and it was publicized via e-mail.
2. The Minutes of the October 24, 1998, Executive Committee Meeting were approved.
3. Al Tinsley noted that his report of the Governors' Meeting in San Antonio appeared in the Spring newsletter.
4. Since Curtis Cooper was busy with the contest, Al gave the Vice Chair's report. Three possible speakers are being considered for the Spring 2000 meeting. A person Curtis would like to invite is located in Florida so more money than usual for airfare and an honorarium would be required. There were no objections.
Al reported that Troy Hicks was reluctant about writing a history of the Section, but would give it a try if no one else would. Troy suggested Roy Utz as a possible author.
A question was raised as to whether or not the recipient of the teaching award had to be kept secret until the presentation. Al and others would rather have it open.
The Executive Committee addressed the three issues in Curtis's report from the Collegiate Mathematics Competition Committee. As far as financial support for the contest, the Section will be asked to commit up to $1000 each year. With regard to membership on the Contest Committee, members will serve until they ask to be replaced. The format of the contest will not be changed.
5. Jim Downing, Past Chair, reported that SMSU was bringing about 20 students to the meeting. Department Chair Yungchen Cheng is working on funding but may request travel support from the Section. It would be a problem if every school requested money for this number of students. Options such as limiting funding to $50 per paper instead of $50 per student were discussed.
6. Susan Callahan distributed copies of the Treasurer's Report.
7. Vic Gummersheimer reported that he had finished his last issue as Newsletter Editor. The bills are paid and the accounts are in order. The Executive Committee officially thanked Vic for his six years of service.
8. John reported that the Nominating Committee (Ed Davenport and Vic Gummersheimer) would be presenting the following slate of officers:
Vice Chair Ilene Morgan (UMR)
Newsletter Editor Jim Bruening (SEMO)
Student Chapter Coordinator Mark Sand (NMSU)
H. S. Lecture Coordinator Rhonda McKee (CMSU)
9. John reported that Tim Ray and Paula Shorter, Project NExT Fellows, had organized two sessions for non-tenured faculty with fewer than six years of teaching experience. They will forward ideas for NExT-like activities to the Executive Committee.
10. John presented a tentative agenda for the Business Meeting. He clarified that all people registered for the section meeting would be eligible for the drawing for the ProSolv software donated by the vendor. A time for remarks from Tom Banchoff will be added to the agenda.
11. The ad hoc committee to study the Section's communications-related positions never got off the ground. The intent was to put together the jobs of web master, newsletter editor and public information officer. John said he would be interested in taking this on as Past Chair.
12. New business discussed by the Executive Committee included a suggestion, from a member of the Selection Committee for the teaching award, that the award only be given if some minimum number of nominations was received. It was decided to keep the current process and remind Selection Committee members that the number of nominations was confidential.
The Executive Committee will recommend that the Section make a donation of $250 to the Leitzel Lecture Fund and a donation of $100 to IMO 2001.
Respectfully submitted,
Susan Callahan
Secretary-Treasurer
Minutes of MAA Missouri Section Business Meeting
April 10, 1999, Southwest Missouri State University
(Approval will be considered at the Spring 2000 Business Meeting: April 15, 2000)
The Business Meeting of the Missouri Section was held in Room 115, Richardson Science Center, on the campus of Rockhurst College. Chair John Koelzer called the meeting to order at 11:00 a.m.
1. There were three announcements: Philip J. Davis will be speaking at the University of Missouri-Rolla on April 19-20. The 9th Annual Kansas City Regional Mathematics Technology EXPO will be held October 1-2, 1999, at Rockhurst. Constance Reid will be speaking on Tuesday, May 4, 1999, at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
2. Tom Banchoff presented membership prize forms to student presenters. Lucille Marshall (SMSU graduate student) presented John Koelzer with thank you cards from the SMSU Math 221 and 622 classes.
3. The minutes of the 1998 Business Meeting were approved as published in the Fall Newsletter.
4. Al Tinsley said there was not much to add to the published report of the Board of Governors Meeting in San Antonio. Some words were missing in the 9th paragraph. It should say SUMMA is helping the Benjamin Banneker Association in making reconditioned TI calculators available to school districts.
5. Tom Banchoff reported that the MAA had conducted a phone survey of a sample of the membership. Priorities for the Association were set at a two-day retreat. A proposed new mission statement which more accurately reflects the activities of the Association will appear in the next issue of FOCUS. Tom hopes to get members' responses to the mission statement and would like ideas on how to get more people to join and participate in the MAA.
6. Susan Callahan distributed the Treasurer's Report. The balance as of April 1, 1999, is $5,515.76.
7. Vic Gummersheimer thanked the Section for allowing him to serve six years as Newsletter Editor. John Koelzer thanked Vic for his efforts.
8. Rhonda McKee reported that 20 people volunteered to be high school lecturers. There were five requests for lectures, and four lectures were given. She distributed information through the high school contest mailing and the MCTM. She would welcome any ideas to stimulate interest in this program.
9. Shing So distributed the report of the 1999 American High School Mathematics Examination. About 3100 students in 70 schools took the test. Scores were a bit lower on average, but the number of students on the honor roll went up. A motion to award cash prizes of $100, $75, $50, and $25 to the top four students, and ten $10 prizes to the next-highest scoring students, as we did last year, was approved. A motion to make the ten $10 prizes a permanent addition to the awards, with the understanding that the Contest Coordinator has the discretion to not give the awards if financial circumstances so dictate, was approved.
10. Robert Roe, Junior High School Contest Coordinator, was not present.
11. Jerry Wilkerson, Public Information Officer, encouraged each department to have an active liaison. He suggested that liaisons encourage their department members to check MAA Online regularly and that each department consider subscribing to Math Horizons.
12. Curtis Cooper, Web Page Administrator, said that the Section's web page has newsletters and forms, and links to the web pages of departments in the section. He would like to know if any links need to be updated. He also welcomes suggestions for improvements or things people would like to see added to the site.
13. Curtis Cooper reported that 21 teams from 13 schools entered the Collegiate Mathematics Competition. Schools may designate no more than two official teams but may bring as many students as they want. A total of 57 students, 16 team advisors, and 7 committee members participated in competition activities. The winner was University of Missouri-Columbia Team A.
14. Ed Davenport reported for the Nominating Committee. The following officers were elected:
Vice Chair Ilene Morgan (UMR)
Newsletter Editor Jim Bruening (SEMO)
Student Chapter Coordinator Mark Sand (NMSU)
H. S. Lecture Coordinator Rhonda McKee (CMSU)
15. There were nine participants in the 5K Run/Walk. Curtis Cooper won the drawing for $15.00 toward an MAA book.
16. A winner for the ProSolv software was drawn from the names of all people registered for the meeting. The winner was Jason Hetherington (SMSU student).
17. Curtis Cooper, Vice Chair, announced that the next meeting will be April 14-15, 2000, at Central Missouri State University. The Collegiate Mathematics Competition will begin on April 13.
18. There was no old business.
19. There were six items of new business.
a. A motion to adopt the following policies for the selection of the recipient of the teaching award was approved: The name of the recipient will not be kept secret until the banquet. The Section Chair will notify the winner and then a general announcement may be made. The Selection Committee should not reveal the number of candidates.
b. A motion to continue to provide up to $1000 per year to support the Competition was approved.
c. Ways to continue to support student presentations while minimizing the financial impact on the Section were discussed. A motion to restrict the reimbursement to $50 per presentation was approved.
d. A motion to make a contribution of $250 to the James Leitzel Memorial Lecture Fund was approved.
e. A motion to make a contribution of $100 to IMO 2001 was approved.
f. A motion to write a letter to Rockhurst College, thanking them for hosting the meeting, was approved.
Respectfully submitted,
Susan Callahan
Secretary-Treasurer
Future Meeting Sites
The Spring Meeting is held at various locations around the state. As part of its long-range planning, the Executive Committee is entertaining invitations for future meetings in 2003 and thereafter. The meeting sites for the past several years and the next three years are listed below for your convenience. If your campus would be willing to host a Spring Meeting, please contact Curtis Cooper, Chair.
1984 Southeast Missouri State University 1994 Missouri Southern State College
1985 Central Missouri State University 1995 Central Missouri State University
1986 Southwest Missouri State University 1996 Southeast Missouri State University
1987 Truman State University 1997 Missouri Western State College
1988 Washington University 1998 Southwest Missouri State University
1989 University. of Missouri-Columbia 1999 Rockhurst College
1990 College of the Ozarks 2000 Central Missouri State University
1991 University of Missouri-Rolla 2001 U. of Missouri-Rolla
1992 Northwest Missouri State University 2002 Truman State University
1993 Westminster College 2003 ????
Note:
The MAA Missouri Section Meeting in 2001 will be held at the University of Missouri-Rolla in Rolla, Missouri on April 5 - 7, 2001.From the Governor
Al Tinsley, CMSU
The 1999 summer meeting of the Board of Governors, held in The Westin Providence Hotel on Friday, July 30, 1999 was managed well by President Thomas Banchoff. There were no contentious issues that prolonged the discussion of any agenda item.
The first action taken by the board was to approve the recommendation by the Executive and Finance Committees that Tina Straley succeed Marsha Sward as Executive Director of the MAA.
A list of 2372 new individual and 50 new institutional memberships was circulated among the board members, and approval was unanimous.
Gerald Porter, Treasurer, announced that the 1998 audit shows a surplus of just under $375,000 in the operating budget and an improvement in cash flow. Current assets for 1998 total $3,478,743, compared with $2,229,782 in 1997, and current liabilities total $3,154,377 compared with $3,196,842 in 1997. He added that the surplus is sufficient to offset deficits in 1995 and 1996.
Barbara Faires, Chair of the Budget Committee, stated that the 2000 budget includes a 4% dues increase, a 3% staff salary increase, a $50,000 contingency, and a surplus of $22,809. The Board gave its unanimous approval.
Martha Siegel, Secretary, presented the changes in the Bylaws necessitated by the merging of the Executive and Finance committees. The proposed modifications received board approval.
Associate Secretary, James Tattersal reported that 1013 had pre-registered for the Providence meeting, making it the most popular since the 1988 summer meeting in Providence. He added that the MAA has employed the services of the AMS Meetings Department to determine suitable sites for Mathfests 2001 and 2002. Under consideration for the August 9-11, 2001 meetings are the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana; for Mathfest 2002, August 8-10, are San Jose State University, the University of Colorado at Boulder, and the University of Maine at Orono.
Anita Solow, speaking for the Subcommittee for Externally Funded Activity, announced that a grants manual is now online and that there will be a breakfast for principal investigators at the January meeting in Washington, DC.
Just prior to the lunch hour, discussion turned to the document entitled A New Agenda for the 21st Century. The current and proposed mission statements reading as follows were noted.
Current: To advance the mathematical sciences, especially at the collegiate level.
Proposed: To promote communication, teaching and learning, and research in mathematics and its uses, especially at the collegiate level, for all who are interested in the mathematical sciences.
A number of board members argued that the proposed mission statement is too long while others held that communication is a tool used in attempting to achieve the Association’s mission.
The Agenda includes a section entitled The Five Priority Action Items. The items are:
I. Better Serve and Expand Our Diverse Membership.
II. Communicate the Programs, Products, Services, and Activities of the MAA More Effectively.
III. Continue to Develop MAA Online, Making it a More Inviting, Sophisticated Member Destination.
IV. Facilitate the Formation of Special Interest Groups (SIGs).
V. Explore the Possibility of Launching a General Interest Magazine.
Action Item I was criticized by some board members for its failure to include a remark about the MAA’s commitment to underrepresented minorities.
The assigned lunch hour discussion topics were the mission statement and the establishment of SIG’s. The afternoon session began with reports from the luncheon tables about their discussions of the topics. A board member offered the following alternative mission statement, and it was favorably received by many.
? To advance teaching, learning, research, communication, and interest in mathematics and its uses, especially at the collegiate level.
The board members were subsequently asked to take the mission statement back to their sections for discussion and input. The issue will be discussed further and action will be taken at the January meeting in Washington, DC. I invite your comments relative to this issue. You may email them to me at tinsley@cmsuvmb.cmsu.edu.
The report by The MAA Task Force on Special Interest Groups included a recommendation that the board initiate a program which establishes Special Interest Groups of the MAA (SIGMAAs) to begin at the January, 2000 meeting and to be reviewed after a period of 5 years. President Banchoff asked the board to approve the recommendation in principle so that the MAA can proceed with the program. Approval was given with the provision that SIGMAAs will be formed according to conditions approved by the Executive Committee in consultation with the Task Force. The Task Force has proposed the following conditions for SIGMAAs:
A minimum number of members initially and in perpetuity
A web page
A newsletter
Regularly scheduled annual business meetings at MAA national meetings
A governance structure voted on by the members
A charter
Don Albers, Associate Executive Director for Publications and Electronic Services, gave his characteristically humorous presentation. In it, he introduced the new MAA books, and he stated that the CMJ data base is nearly complete. He added that the first 100 years of the Monthly is now on JSTOR and is available to those whose institutions are members of JSTOR. He noted that individuals will soon be able to purchase access to JSTOR for $25. He reported that the shopping cart software has seen some delays and that Fernando Goueva will soon assume the editorship of Focus. He concluded by proposing for board consideration the introduction of a new general interest magazine called Mathematical World.
Titu Andreescu, Executive Director of the American High School Mathematics Examination, reported on the performance by the USA team at the recent IMO, and Dick Gibbs, Chair of the Committee on American Mathematics Competitions, announced that the University of Nebraska is a new sponsor of the AHSME and that Kappa Mu Epsilon is waiting in the wings, bringing the total sponsorship up to a ? sweet sixteen. Dick reported that the AHSME has been separated into two exams, the AHSME->10 and the AHSME->12. Both exams will have a duration of 75 minutes, and AHSME-> 10 can not be taken by eleventh and twelfth graders.
The meeting concluded with the presentation of additional brief reports, approval of awards recipients, and elections.
From the Campuses
Central Missouri State University (Warrensburg)
Events:
The department hosted a Sonia Kovalevsky High School Mathematics Day on Oct. 5. Forty-one
sophomore and junior girls and their teachers from 14 area schools attended workshops, a problem-
solving competition, and a panel discussion on career opportunities for women in mathematics. Featured
on the panel were Madonna Cernesky, a mathematician with the National Security Agency, Ann Sharp, an
actuary and CMSU graduate, Lillian Cooper, an information technology manager with Allied Signal, and
Dr. Rhonda McKee, professor of mathematics at CMSU. Dr. McKee secured funding for the day with a
grant from the Association for Women in Mathematics.
Student Organizations:
The Actuarial Organization will sponsor its second annual Actuary Career Fair on Oct. 20. Actuarial
Science students from CMSU and area colleges and universities will discuss internship and full-time
opportunities with representatives from life and property/casualty insurance companies and consulting
companies. Dr. Jean Tao is the department's Actuarial Science Coordinator.
The department will host competition in the Mid-Central Region for the Association for Computing
Machinery programming contest Nov. 6. Dr. Vince Edmondson, Dr. Larry Cammack, and Dr. Curtis Cooper are the
department's ACM sponsors. Member of team A will be Darin Tessier, Nathan Steinmann, and Daniel
O'Farrell. Team B consists of Jachin Misko, Nathan Thrasher, and Andrew Feist.
Honors:
Rhonda McKee has been named CMSU's nominee for the Governor's Award for Excellence in Teaching.
She will be recognized at the Governor's Conference on Education in December.
New Faculty:
Dr. Cynthia L. Ramey began a tenure-position at the rank of assistant professor starting in August. She
had served in a non-tenure-track position for 4 years. She received her Ph.D. in Education and
Mathematics from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1997.
Majid Saadatmanesh joined the faculty in August as an instructor of mathematics. He received his BS
from Central in Computer Sciences and Mathematics in 1986 and his MS, also from Central in 1991.
Steven R. Shattuck also joined the faculty in August as an instructor of mathematics. He received his BS
and MS degrees from Central in Actuarial Science and Mathematics in 1994 and 1998 respectively.
Faculty Search:
The department is accepting applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor
beginning August, 2000. A doctorate in Computer Science or Mathematics is required. Preference will
be given to candidates with backgrounds in networking and/or computer architecture/systems. Interested
individuals should contact Ed Davenport, Chair.
(Submitted by Ed Davenport.)
Culver-Stockton College (Canton)
We lost one of our respected colleagues, Atul Roy. He took a position as Full Professor at Montgomery
College in Germantown, MD. Bob Burtnett has been hired as a temporary replacement.
(Submitted by Gary G. Cochell)
Drury College (Springfield)
Professor Ted Nickle retired May 1999 after 38 years on the faculty at Drury College.
The math club continues to run a free tutoring service for the entire campus and conducts the Annual
Math Contest (two divisions) and a Paper Airplane Contest open to all students. The club also holds
several social events both on campus and at the homes of the faculty members.
Drury College will be changing its name to Drury University effective January 1, 2000.
(Submitted by Carol Collins)
Missouri Western State College (St. Joseph)
New faculty: Dr. Donald Vestal is the newest member of the Math faculty at M.W.S.C. Donald earned
his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Colorado in 1998.
Dr. John Atkinson will retire from the department in May of 2000. He has just returned to full time
teaching after having a triple bypass in early Sept.
The department is beginning a search this fall for a person to fill the vacancy left by Dr. Atkinson’s
retirement.
(Submitted by Jerry Wilkerson)
Southeast Missouri State University (Cape Girardeau)
New Faculty Member: Marcus Agustin, Ph.D. from Bowling Green State University, Statistics.
Grants: Dr. Tamela Randolph received a $39,000 CBHE grant to present the 1999 Summer Workshop
entitled Topics of Middle School Mathematics.
Event: The Twenty-Third Annual Math Field Day will be held on April 18, 2000.
Project: For Mathematics Awareness Week 1999, Dr. Glenn Chappell and the Math Club constructed a
15-foot high, 140-pound, metal stellated icosahedron on the quad next to Johnson Hall. Pictures are
available at http://cstl.semo.edu/math/
Conference: The 1999 Fall Mathematics, Science, and Technology Conference was held on October 25.
Award: Dr. Timothy Ray received the Service Award from the College of Science and Technology.
(Submitted by Vic Gummersheimer)
Truman State University (Kirksville)
NEW FACULTY
Carol Hoferkamp, Ph.D., Statistics, University of Virginia
Chuck Iwashita, Ph.D., Algebra, University of Illinois
Phil Ryan, Ph.D., Representation Theory, Lie Theory, University of California, Berkeley
Tom Tegtmeyer, Ph.D., Complex Analysis, Purdue University
Hristo Voulov, Ph.D., Differential Equations, Sofia University
Dr. Todd Hammond had a successful review for tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor.
RETIREMENT
Dr. Keith Peck will retire at the end of the fall 1999 semester after 291/2 years on the Truman faculty.
FACULTY SEARCHES
We have faculty searches for positions available in Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science
beginning in either January or August, 2000. Details may be reviewed at http://mathax.truman.edu.
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS AND SPONSORS:
MAA Student Chapter--Ron Knight and Jason Miller
Kappa Mu Epsilon--Mary Sue Beersman and Jay Belanger
Actuarial Science Club--James Guffey
Math and Science Students in Education--Susan LaGrassa
(Submitted by Lanny Morley)
Washington University (St. Louis)
New Faculty Members: Alexander Borisov (PhD, Penn State), an algebraist, is a new Chauvenet
Assistant Professor. Department guests this semester include Jean-Pierre Leduc (wavelets), Naomi
Shaker-Monder (combinatorial matrix theory), and analysts Qui Bui, Y.S. Han, Maciej Paluszynski, and
Chin-Cheng Lin. Ann Podleski (PhD, Washington University) has been hired for part time
duties as Coordinator of Lower Division Teaching.
Leadership Appointments: Professor Steve Krantz is the new department chair.
Position Searches: We will be searching for two new tenure track faculty (one in statistics) and two new
Chauvenet Assistant Professors.
Math Club: Sponsor, Prof. Nik Weaver. After not much activity last year, the first meeting this year
attracted about 25 students for a showing of the film "The Proof", with pizza. The group will continue
meeting this year using films and inviting faculty/other students to give short talks.
Department Projects: We are conducting an experiment on the effectiveness of "smaller section"
instruction in Calculus I: one of our large sections was split (with no forewarning to the students who
were registering) into 4 smaller sections of about (25-30), in which the instructor also serves as the leader
of the weekly recitation section. We hope to learn whether students in these sections have either
improved performance or a better subjective "experience" (morale, attitude,...) with the course by the end
of the semester. We are also experimenting with the use of computer software (Matlab) in all sections of
Calculus III this year.
Professor Ed Spitznagel continues to develop his course "Calculus II with Statistics", intended for biology
and pre-med types. The course ties the calculus and probability/statistics together with a substantial
amount of material from pharmicokinetics.
In the Spring 2000 semester, Prof. George Kamberov (Chauvenet Assistant Professor) will offer a new
course on "Financial Derivatives and Differential Equations which will include the Nobel-Prize-winning
work of Black and Scholes on option-pricing schemes.
Other: In September, mathematicians from around the world gathered at Washington University for a
"Mitchfest", honoring Professor Mitch Taibleson on the occasion of his 70th birthday.
(Submitted by Ronald Freiwald.)
Southwest Baptist University (Bolivar)
Dr. Kevin Hopkins promoted to Professor.
Mr. Bob Glasgow on the second year of sabbatical leave at University of Missouri-Columbia working on his doctorate in mathematics education.
Dr. Kevin Hopkins was co-director of an Eisenhower workshop at Penn Valley Community College, with Mr. Tim Chappell of the math department there. This is the fourth year in a row they have done this workshop, serving nearly 350 math and science teachers from around the state on "Using the Internet as a Tool to Improve Math and Science Teaching". More information can be found at http://eisen.kcmetro.cc.mo.us.
(Submitted by Kevin Hopkins.)
University of Missouri-Rolla
New Faculty Members: (Name, Degree, Specialization, etc.)
Tom Akers, M.S. UMR, Former NASA Shuttle Astronaut, is a new instructor.
Tenure and/or Promotions: (Name, New Rank, etc.)
Gaoxing Gan promoted to Associate Professor with tenure.
Retirements: (Name, Years of Service, Plans, etc.)
Jagdish Patel: Retiring after 24 years of Service,
Position Searches: (Rank, term, area)
Two open tenure-track positions in Statistics
UMR MAA Student Chapter:
Sponsor: Rob Roe
Activities: Faculty and students presentations. Plans are pending for hosting a Great Plains Math League
competition". Participation in the Girl Scout 2+2 program.
Department Projects: (Teaching Strategies, Grants, Organization, etc.)
The "Show Me Seminar" is an ongoing (since 1994) biannual seminar in analysis sponsored by the NSF
and the math departments at Washington University, University of Missouri-Columbia, University of
Missouri-Rolla, and University of Missouri-Rolla.
Other:
Professor Rob Roe: Outstanding Student Advisor Award
Professors Ilene Morgan and Mike Hilgers both got Outsanding Teaching Awards.
Also:
In cooperation with the mathematics departments at the other UM schools, several faculty and graduate
students are participating in online tutoring using whiteboard facilities available through Internet Explore.
Students can log onto their computer and get live help with the mathematics problems through the web
with both voice and handwritten communication. Those involved with this project at UMR include: Glen
Haddock, Robert Roe, Murat Atmaca, Sibel Pasali, Yilin Cao, Jonathan Hatch, Brian Raines. For more
information go to http://www.system.missouri.edu/mathcid/.
(Submitted by Tim Randolph.)
Missouri Valley College (Marshall)
The Math/Science Division at Missouri Valley College has hired two new faculty in mathematics: Mr.
Garry Block, Assistant Professor of Mathematics, and Dr. Marilyn Belwood, Assistant Professor of
Mathematics. Mr. Block joins us having recently completed a Master's Degree in applied mathematics at
Texas Tech. He also has had a paper recently accepted for publication in the Bulletin of Mathematical
Biology. Dr. Belwood has been an adjunct at Missouri Valley College for one-and-a-half years and is
now a full-time faculty member in mathematics. She has a doctorate in educational psychology with a
specialization in statistics and measurement.
John and Tracy Rice have left Missouri Valley College after 5 and 3 years of full-time service. John is
now employed by Towers-Perrin in Saint Louis.
(Submitted by Gary Raduns.)
Missouri Southern State College (Joplin)
1. After 26 years of service, Mrs. Mary Elick is retiring effective July 2000. Mrs. Elick has been the KME sponsor for 25 years and she was a KME National Officer for 8 years. Students and colleagues will miss her enthusiasm and dedication for effective teaching.
2. Working together with the MO-KAN Association of Mathematics Teacher and the Mathematics Department at Pittsburg State University, our department sponsored and organized the 2nd Mathematics Conference for Secondary Teachers. The conference was held on September 25 on the MSSC campus. Dr. Pat Cassens and Dr. Kerry Johnson were in charge of the organization. Dr. Linda Hand, Dr. Kerry Johnson, and Dr. Juan L. Vazquez presented papers at the conference.
3. One of our students, Michael Wilkerson, presented a paper at the KME National Convention in Lakeland, Florida.
4. The departments of Mathematics, Physical Sciences, and Biology are working together to incorporate the TI-86 graphing calculator in most of the mathematics classes and some of the physics, chemistry, and biology classes. Dr. Kerry Johnson and Dr. Linda Hand wrote and received a grant from Funding for Results to experiment with this idea.
5. KME/Math Club meetings are held every third Tuesday of the month. At the meeting students and faculty enjoy "free pizza" and have the opportunity to hear a guest speaker.
6. On Thursday, October 28, the department will host its 3rd. annual gathering for Math majors.
(Submitted by Juan Vazquez.)
University of Missouri-St. Louis
The Master of Science in Computer Science degree program began in the Fall, 1999 semester.
Promotions:
Chal Benson, from Associate Professor to Professor,
Gail Ratcliff, from Associate Professor to Professor,
Kyungho Oh, from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor.
New Faculty:
Wenjie He, Assistant Professor,
Chengjun Liu, Assistant Professor.
Grants:
Grant Welland received an NSF grant in conjunction with the CBMS Coordinating Board of the Mathematical Sciences titled "Interactions between Harmonic Analysis, Statistical Estimation and Data Compression. His research interests are wavelets and graphics.
Shiying Shao has received an NSF grant titled "Metal Artifact Reduction in Spiral CT using Wavelets". He is working with the Washington University School of Medicine.
Spencer & Spencer Mathematics Lecture Series (this is an annual event):
Speaker: Keith Devlin
Date: May 4, 2000
Place: Summit Lounge, J. C. Penney Conf. Center.
(Submitted by Wayne McDaniel.)