LA/MS SECTION NEWSLETTER
Spring 2002
Reports from the Section Meeting:
- Governor's Report
- Student Papers
- Student Competition
- Treasurer's Report
- Proceedings Committee Report
- Concerns Committee Report
- Location and Nominations Committee Report
- Resolutions Committee Report
- Distinguished Teaching Committee Report
I would like to begin by expressing how honored I am to be given the opportunity to serve as your Section Governor. My three-year term began immediately after our section meeting last year and, since that time, I have attended an orientation for new governors, and two subsequent meetings of the Board of Governors. I have learned quite a bit in this first year. I must admit that prior to this experience, I did not realize the depth and breadth of services that the MAA provides on a national level. Previously, I had been active in the MAA primarily at the local level. Consequently, I often wondered why more of our dues couldn’t go directly to activities of our section. However, after learning of the wide range of national activities supported by the MAA, I have a new respect for this organization, and am more proud than ever to be a part of it.
If you are not aware of the many activities of the MAA, I invite you to spend some time browsing the MAA website (www.maa.org ). Begin by taking a look at the professional development opportunities that are available. Some of these have been offered at our section level, such as the grant writing workshop and the workshop on assessment. These opportunities, and many others, are available at the national level as well. Also, be sure to look through MathDL (the Mathematics Digital Library) and JOMA (the Journal of Online Mathematics). Both of these MAA hosted websites contain educational resources which may be of use to you. While you’re browsing, be sure to also check out the new SIGMAAs (Special Interest Groups within the MAA). Finally, be sure to look under MAA Programs to see the wide range of student activities and competitions which the MAA supports (the AMC 8, AMC 10, AMC 12, and the IMO to name a few).
The bottom line is that we are part of the largest professional society focusing on undergraduate mathematics education and our membership dues, a portion of which are tax deductible, are going to many good uses. Moreover, the MAA is set up to be run by, and for, its members, which is precisely the reason that the governing board is comprised of elected section representatives.
In addition to making sure that you are aware of some of the many activities of the MAA, I would like to make sure you know that the national office seeks your ideas, your involvement, and your input. You can communicate your ideas/concerns to the MAA in a variety of ways: through our section’s Concerns Committee, through your department’s liaison, and/or through me as your Section Governor. If you would like to speak with me concerning anything pertaining to the MAA, please feel free to do so. Additionally, if you are interested in serving on a committee at the national level, please communicate that to me as well as I would be delighted to help members of our section get involved in the committee structure of the MAA.
In closing, it is an honor to be a member of the MAA and a privilege to serve you in this capacity. If you have any questions, concerns, or ideas concerning our section, or the MAA as a whole, I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me.
Thank you,
Connie Campbell
LA-MS Section Governor
e-mail: campbcm@millsaps.edu
2002 Meeting Minutes
Committee Chairman
: Clifton Wingard, Delta State University
Members Present
: Clifton Wingard, Melinda Gann, Brian
Heck, Shaochen Yang
Members Absent
: Tilak de Alwis, Stan Chadick
Also Present:
Connie Campbell, Section Governor
- Concern was expressed over the low and in some cases declining number of mathematics majors in our institutions and also the retention of students in the major. The committee encourages departments to increase their efforts to recruit students into the mathematics programs and study means by which to meet the students' needs in order to retain these students as mathematics majors.
Because of some existing committee members who were appointed recently have left the section prior to rotating off the committee and others having been named to fill the vacated positions, the committee decided the length of the term of the current committee members to achieve the correct rotational balance. The years in which the terms expire for the committee members are as follows:
2002 - Shaochen Yang, Tilak de Alwis
2003 - Clifton Wingard, Stan Chadick
2004 - Melinda Gann , Brian Heck
The committee agreed
that Clifton Wingard would continue to chair the committee for the March 2002
- March 2003 term, and he accepted the position.
Member News
Submitted by Shaochen Yang,syang@muw.edu
Geometry Camp
With funding from a NASA Space Grant, MUW held a Geometry Camp last
June.Students spent their time at the week-long residential camp
learning about Geometer's Sketchpad, Euclid, constructions, and doing
other hands-on activities with origami and graphing calculators.
Math Camp 2002
With no set theme this year, Math Camp 2002 will be an eclectic blend of the mathematics that we find fascinating. Enrollment will be open to all students finishing 5th grade and above. The camp will be June 2-June 7, and will cost $350, which includes
all meals and housing costs. Contact Bonnie Oppenheimer at 662-329-7239
(boppen@muw.edu) for registration forms.