Chair's Column

Dear members and friends of the UNT Math Department,

At the beginning of last year I was neither at UNT, nor was I a department chair, nor was I thinking about becoming a department chair. So there is something slightly surreal for me writing the Chair's Column for Math News, the UNT math department newsletter. When I learned in early 2019 that the department is conducting an external chair search, I was intrigued, as I had enjoyed a number of visits to UNT over the past several years. In fact, another such visit happened in April 2019, when the department hosted TORA X (Texas-Oklahoma Representations and Automorphic forms). My final visit, a campus interview, happened shortly thereafter.

Starting with me at UNT in fall 2019 were Jodi Acker, a Senior Lecturer specializing in developmental math; Assistant Professor Yanyan He, who works in computational mathematics and has a joint appointment with the Department of Computer Science and Engineering; Assistant Professor Giordano Tierra Chica, who specializes in computational PDE and fluid dynamics; and Instructional Lab Manager Heidee Vincent, who works closely with our undergraduate TAs.

There were also departures. Professor Robert Kallman retired in summer 2019 after 40 years of service to the university. Professor and former department chair Neal Brand taught his last class in fall 2019 and retired after 36 years of service. Scheduling Assistant Maegan Garcia left the department in August 2019 to become the new Math Lab Coordinator. The Math Lab is now run by the Learning Center, but continues to employ some of our graduate students as tutors.

The staff position vacated by Maegan was filled by one of our own, Kelli Chase, who previously occupied the front desk and had been the manager of the Math Quest Center. The search for the position vacated by Kelli resulted in the hire of Kristi Nelson, who brought a lot of new energy to the main office.

As for outstanding research achievements, I would like to congratulate Assistant Professor Nam Trang for receiving an NSF CAREER award, the first in the history of the department. Another highlight this past academic year was the completion of the renovation of the Statistics Lab, named after Dr. Linda Truitt Creagh, who made a generous donation benefiting our statistics researchers. We were honored to host the donor, Dean and President for a ribbon cutting ceremony in January 2020.

Then all normal operation was disrupted in mid March because of COVID-19. While everyone was on spring break, we learned that classes would be cancelled for an additional week, after which all teaching would be done online. We scrambled to purchase tablets and webcams, already difficult to find, for our numerous instructors. Online teaching was a new experience except for a few people, but thanks to everyone's commitment and collaboration we finished the semester without major glitches. With 6,227 students enrolled in Math classes this spring, I was very impressed that we received almost no complaints.

I knew before we were forced into exceptional circumstances that this was a place with great potential, but the crisis really brought out some amazing qualities. I feel very privileged to be part of such a resilient and dedicated department.

Ralf Schmidt, Chair

Statistics Lab Named for Alumna

The new statistics lab in the Mathematics Department pays tribute to alumna Linda Truitt Creagh ('62, '63 M.A., '67 Ph.D.). In 1945, Dr. Creagh started her educational journey as a kindergartener at North Texas State College's demonstration school since her father, Dr. Price Truitt, was a science professor here. After receiving her bachelor's and master's degrees at UNT, she became the university's first chemistry doctoral graduate in 1967. She went on to have a successful career as a research chemist, advancing liquid crystal display (LCD) technology at Texas Instruments and developing printer and ink-jet technology for Xerox, Spectra and Fuji Film. After being inspired by UNT associate professor of statistics Xuexia Wang's research on cancer, Dr. Creagh made a $150,000 donation to the Mathematics Department. The College of Science and the Mathematics Department honored her with the naming of the Dr. Linda Truitt Creagh Statistics Lab, which was covered by NBC DFW. Pictured, from left to right, are UNT President Neal Smatresk, Linda Truitt Creagh, and College of Science Dean Su Gao.

UNT's First Female Full Professor in Mathematics

The math department will be getting its first female full professor ever! The UNT Provost has recommended Dr. Anne Shepler for promotion. Dr. Shepler works in geometry, combinatorics, and modern algebra and has served as Principal Investigator on external research grants for 19 of the past 20 years, including on three standard NSF research grants (two after tenure), an NSF post-doc, and grants from the National Security Agency (NSA), the Simons Foundation, and the Texas Coordinating Board. She was also awarded a Humboldt Research Fellowship after tenure. Dr. Shepler has supervised 6 Master's and 3 PhD degrees with 2 additional PhD students graduating now and 3 more in progress. She has organized 3 different summer research experiences for undergraduates using NSF funds. Dr. Shepler also founded the Women in Mathematical Sciences (WIMS) group at UNT and continues as its organizer in addition to founding the UNT math club. She served as co-PI for three NSF grants supporting the regional Texas Oklahoma Representations and Automorphic Forms (TORA) conferences and has nationally co-organized six special sessions for the American Mathematical Society. Dr. Shepler currently serves as an associate editor for the Mathematical Monthly published by the Mathematical Association of America. In addition, the Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM) appointed her to co-organize national events showcasing the contributions of women in research mathematics.

How We Survived the First Few Weeks

Up until Spring Break 2020 we had a completely normal semester. Then everything changed. Here is how the events unfolded as the coronavirus crisis reached our department.

Week of 3/9 (Spring Break)

• 3/9 (M): This is the last "normal" day on campus.

• 3/10 (T): Suddenly the prospect is being raised that all classes might be moved to online because of the developing coronavirus situation. Director of Internet Instruction Mary Ann Barber is starting to prepare emergency documents on things like setting up and administering tests on Canvas.

• 3/11 (W): Dean Su Gao from the College of Science starts holding daily briefings with the COS leadership team.

• 3/12 (R): All in-person classes are being cancelled for the following week. We are told that all instruction after that will be online. Everyone is asked to fill out a Remote Teaching Form explaining what resources they will need to be teaching their course remotely.

  We are learning the difference between synchronous and asynchronous online teaching. We realize there will be a need for webcams. The department has only 3, but we are able to order 10 more. Such equipment is already becoming difficult to find and expensive.

  The MAA conference planned for March 26-28 is cancelled. All University sponsored international travel is cancelled until further notice. Domestic travel is only allowed for "essential business continuity" purposes. Essentially, everyone is grounded.

• 3/13 (F): Six members of the department who had been travelling to "hotspots" are asked not to come to campus for two weeks. The Millican colloquium and all seminars are cancelled for the rest of the semester.

• 3/14 (S) - 3/15 (S): The entire COS leadership team is working and having more meetings this weekend to prepare for the changes that are coming.

Week of 3/16 ("Extended" Spring Break)

The University has cancelled all classes for this week. We have 4 PhD and Master's defenses scheduled, which are all being converted to Zoom meetings. People are starting to set up web pages with useful tips on Canvas and Zoom.

• 3/16 (M): A job candidate for the open lecturer position comes to town. This is taking place in person, but the usual dinner is cancelled. Denton county has its first official coronavirus case. At-risk staff members are starting to work from home.

• 3/17 (T): We are scrambling to assess instructor needs: Webcams, Ziggy document cameras, Wacom tablets. At this point we still believe people might be able to teach from their regularly assigned classrooms, using the document camera, or from their offices. Another job interview for the open lecturer position is taking place. This is the last in-person event in the department.

• 3/18 (W): We are able to order document cameras and Wacom tablets on emergency funding provided by the University.

• 3/19 (R): The final job interview for the lecturer position is taking place 100% online.

• 3/20 (F): All instructors are asked whether they are ready to teach from home, in case the campus gets shut down.

• 3/21 (S): Denton county now has 24 coronavirus cases. The initial growth is exponential.

• 3/22 (S): COS emergency meeting. The President announces that the campus will be shutting down by end of business on 3/24.

Week of 3/23 (First Week of Online Teaching)

• 3/23 (M): The department is mostly deserted. This is the first day of online teaching. There was a concern that networks will be overwhelmed due to everyone using Zoom, but this does not materialize. We have isolated reports of inadequate Internet connections, but overall it is going surprisingly well.

• 3/24 (T): We receive a delivery of 14 Wacom tablets, highly welcome for teaching needs.

• 3/25 (W): The campus is shut down. All personnel are approved for 100% telecommuting. Only the chair and two staff members receive "essential personnel" cards that allow them to come to campus. In reality, Kristi Nelson will be the only person physically present in the department for the next few months.

• 3/26 (R): As of this day, Denton county is under a stay-at-home order.

• 3/27 (F): The document cameras arrive. Kristi Nelson meets up with instructors in a Wal-Mart parking lot or at their homes to deliver the needed equipment.

The Weeks Thereafter

The following weeks saw us struggling with a worsening budget situation, trying to implement the new P/NP grading option for students (which initially was very confusing), and figuring out how to do things online that would normally be done in person, for example the awards ceremony or Executive Committee elections via Zoom. But we were able to figure it all out, so that, thanks to the efforts of the entire department, the spring semester came to a successful conclusion.

Above and Beyond

The abrupt shift to online teaching left faculty, staff, and students scrambling to keep up. Through this transition there have been many stories of instructors and students going to great lengths to continue to excel. One example of this was shared by Provost Cowley in one of her updates:

I want to share an excerpt of a letter I received today from a student expressing appreciation for the extraordinary effort of a Dr. Huettenmueller in Math. "While the shift of online classes is big adjustment to not only students, I know now that is for professors as well... Yesterday for our 8am lecture, she was teaching in her car... she told us was that around 4am, she noticed her internet was not working. So she drove to the UNT campus to connect to the internet and teach from her car…To me, that shows nothing but dedication. Out of all the possibilities such as our TA covering the material in recitation or simply canceling class, she went out of her way to ensure she was able to teach us the material. It simply pleases me to know I am taught by a professor who is so passionate about their job and about us. I could not let her hard work go unnoticed…It shows me that my efforts are reciprocated and that I am not alone."

Math Faculty and Staff Digital Tea

The Math Faculty and Staff Digital Tea, organized by Pieter Allaart, was a chance for faculty and staff to stay connected and visit during these challenging times. The Math Faculty and Staff Digital Tea happened on Zoom every Monday at 4:00 from March 30 through May 4. The dozen or so attendees each week would usually chat for about an hour with topics of conversation ranging from tech troubleshooting tips to how to promote academic integrity on exams to whatever the newest coronavirus drug of the day was.

Lecturer Hallway Conversations

Marc Grether organized weekly Zoom to take the place of "hallway conversations" between lecturers. The meetings were held weekly at 2pm on Fridays, usually lasting about an hour, from March 20th through April 30th. The talks generally covered how classes were going, what worked well, what didn't, how fellow lecturers intended to test, and just visiting as well.

Banach Spaces Webinars

The Banach Space Webinar series was organized by Bunyamin Sari as a research seminar on Banach spaces and related topics. The math seminar meets each Friday at 9:00am CST, with the first meeting on February 7, 2020, and going through July 31, 2020. Information on upcoming talks and videos of past talks can be found here.

Keeping Spirits Up

While everyone else was transitioning to working remotely, Kristi Nelson stayed on campus as the only person physically left in the department. But being the only person in the department didn't get Kristi down as can be seen by some of the newest math department decorations.

Robert R. Kallman Retires

Robert Kallman retired from the department in 2019 after 40 years of service, and the department has nominated him for emeritus status. Dr. Kallman received his Ph.D. in mathematics from MIT in 1968. After holding postdoctoral positions at MIT, Yale, and UC Berkeley, as well as consulting positions at NASA and Los Alamos Labs, he was appointed associate professor at the University of Florida in 1973 and then promoted to professor in 1976. He was appointed professor at UNT in 1979. During his time at UNT he directed 12 Ph.D. students and 7 Master’s students. Dr. Kallman’s research interests range from pure to applied mathematics, including fields such as signal processing and optical engineering. He has published 48 journal articles, 24 conference proceedings, 11 technical reports, and holds one patent. He has been awarded over $2.1 million in external funding, including large grants from the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Texas Advance Technology Program.

New Faculty Members

Jodi Acker

Jodi Acker joined the department in Fall 2019 as a senior lecturer. Ms. Acker received her B.S. and M.S. in mathematics from Texas A&M University at Commerce. She has previously taught at the junior-high, high-school, and community-college level. She enjoys teaching students who have struggled with mathematics in the past. The challenge when teaching developmental courses is to inspire the students to see the potential in themselves, along with finding creative ways to teach the topic. She finds it very rewarding when students gain confidence in their own mathematical abilities.

Yanyan He

Yanyan He joined the department in Fall 2019 as an assistant professor with a joint appointment in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. She previously worked as an assistant professor at New Mexico Tech, and as a post-doctoral fellow in the Scientific Computing and Imaging Institute of the University of Utah. Dr. He received her Ph.D. in applied and computational mathematics from Florida State University in 2013. Her research interests focus on uncertainty quantification (UQ), including model correction based on physical constraints, parametric uncertainty analysis, non-probabilistic uncertainty modeling, and the application of UQ techniques to various disciplines such as biology, engineering, oncology, etc. Her professional goal is to develop effective and efficient mathematical approaches and use them to solve the problems arising in systems under uncertainty with an emphasis on interdisciplinary research.

Giordano Tierra-Chica

Giordano Tierra Chica joined the department as an assistant professor in Fall 2019. He previously worked at Temple University as a research assistant professor. He has also held post-doctoral research positions at the University of Notre Dame and Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic. Dr. Tierra Chica received his Ph.D.in mathematics from Universidad de Sevilla in 2012. His research interests focus on applied mathematics with special emphasis on modeling, numerical analysis and simulation techniques for multiphysics problems that are formulated using systems of coupled partial differential equations, with applications in life and material sciences that are based on or involve the understanding of the rheology of complex fluids.

Grants

Several faculty members were awarded grants this year:

• John Krueger was awarded a grant from the Simons Foundation for his project Forcing and Consistency Results.
• Ralf Schmidt was awarded a grant from the Simons Foundation for his project New Theoretical and Computational Methods for Siegel Modular Forms.
• Helen Wang was awarded the following grants as a subcontract PI:
1. Understanding the Molecular Underpinnings of Anthracycline-related Cardiomyopathy (from V Foundation for Cancer Research),
2. Bone Marrow Transplant Survivor Study-2 (from the NIH).
• Nam Trang was awarded a CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for his project Current and Future Developments of the Core Model Induction. The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a Foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. A CAREER award is viewed by the Division Of Mathematical Sciences of the NSF as the highest distinction that the NSF can provide to junior researchers in the mathematical sciences. This is the first time a UNT mathematician has received this prestigious award.

Promotions

Krista Hines was promoted to Principal Lecturer in Fall 2019 and received the College of Science Faculty Award for Service in Spring 2019. She has taught mathematics at the university level for 23 years, including 10 years at the University of North Texas and 13 years at Louisiana Tech University. Ms. Hines currently serves as the assistant chair of the department after previously serving as the director of core courses. Her background is in mathematics education, and she specializes in teaching MATH 1350/1351 Mathematics for Elementary Education Majors I & II. She has three children and one grandson, which motivates her to provide prospective elementary educators with the tools they need to ensure that their students will be able to understand mathematics rather than simply do mathematics. One of her recent accomplishments was securing a partnership between the department and Communities in Schools North Texas (CISNT), a dropout-prevention program targeting elementary, middle, and high-school students throughout North Texas. UNT students volunteer as academic coaches who provide 15 hours of mathematics tutoring during the semester. Several Math 1350/1351 students have been hired by CISNT after their course work was completed.

Regeneron Teacher of Merit

Kiko Kawamura was selected by the Regeneron Science Talent Search as a 2020 Regeneron Teacher of Merit for her work with the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science.

Women in Mathematical Sciences

UNT's Women in Mathematical Sciences (WIMS) group hosted a luncheon and special talk by Dr. Sue Geller on Fermat's Last Theorem on November 15, 2019. Dr. Sue Geller is a Professor Emerita of Mathematics at Texas A&M University. Her research interests include cyclic homology, algebraic K-theory, mathematical education, bioinformatics, and biostatistics.

Faculty Searches

Several faculty searches have come to a successful conclusion. Xuexia (Helen) Wang was leading a joint search with the Department of Biological Sciences for a tenure-track assistant professor of biostatistics. Nirmala Naresh was leading the search for a lecturer who will specialize in teaching entry-level courses such as algebra, mathematics for liberal arts, precalculus, and science and engineering calculus. Anne Shepler and Steve Jackson have served on a joint search committee for a new tenured position with a joint appointment in the Department of Computer Science and the Department of Mathematics, in collaboration with the UNT BioDiscovery Institute.

Post-doctoral Fellowship Program

The department has established a new post-doctoral fellowship program. The original plan was to hire two visiting assistant professors every year, each with a three-year term, so that there will eventually be six such positions. Successful candidates will be assigned a faculty mentor with whom they will engage in research and will teach two to three courses per year. However, due to budget constraints caused by the COVID-19 crisis, we were only able to fill one position this year.

State Employee Charitable Campaign

Congratulations to the department for raising $996 as part of this year’s Texas State Employee Charitable Campaign, more than any other department in the College of Science! All our staff and some faculty contributed homemade goodies like soups, pies, cookies, pancakes and chili, which were sold outside the main office on the 4th floor of the GAB.

Social Media

The Department of Mathematics entered the 21st Century by having a presence on Twitter and Facebook. Follow us at @UNTMATH on twitter and UNT Mathematics on Facebook. We promise not to overwhelm you with postings!

Graduate Algebra Symposium

On Saturday February 29, graduate students from UNT, UTA, OU, Baylor, Texas A&M, Sam Houston State University, and UT Dallas gathered at UNT to present at the Graduate Algebra Symposium. Students gave twenty minute presentations on topics related to their research in algebra.

This is an event run by graduate students for graduate students. This semester the event was organized by Naomi Krawzik, Colin Lawson, and Chelsea Drescher.

Math Club

The Math Club is devoted to promoting interest in mathematics and fellowship among students of all mathematical backgrounds. Meetings are at 1pm in GAB 473 to discuss math, play games, prepare for the Putnam exam, and to plan departmental picnics. The semester picnics take place at North Lakes Park.

Putnam Competition

In December 2019 we had one student take the William Lowell Putnam Exam. The student was Tobey Mathis, receiving 12 points which put him in the top 25% among all students who took the Putnam exam. The William Lowell Putnam exam is offered every year on the first Saturday in December to undergraduates. The problems are quite challenging; getting even 1 question correct is an achievement! For the last several years in the fall Dr. Allaart and Dr. Iaia have team taught Math 3010 – a one credit hour problem solving class which helps undergraduates prepare for the Putnam exam.

Integration Bee

The Integration Bee is a contest for undergraduate and high school students to evaluate indefinite integrals. There is always fun, cake, and lots of integrals. The 2019 Integration Bee was held on April 15, 2019, and organized by Joseph Iaia. The 2019 winners were Kelly Liu (TAMS, First Place, center in picture), Amanda Chen (Jasper High School, Second Place, right in picture), and Vivian Zhang (Jasper High School, Third Place, left in picture).

For more information, please see http://math.unt.edu/integration-bee.

Problem of the Month

Every month during regular semesters, the math department and the math club feature the problem of the month competition. This contest is open to all currently enrolled undergraduate students. Students who submit correct solutions receive cash prizes and certificates of excellence. For more information, please see http://math.unt.edu/problem-of-the-month.

Mathematical Contest in Modeling

Each year a team from UNT competes in the Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM), an international contest for high school and college students organized by the Consortium for Mathematics and Its Applications (COMAP). Coached by Professor Jay Liu, the UNT MCM team with members Jack Hasty, Arun Surujpaul, and Blake Wood participated in the contest in the spring of 2019. They were recognized as Successful Participant.

Faculty Awards

• Faculty Research Award: Nam Trang
• Faculty Teaching Award: Nirmala Naresh and Anne Shepler
• Faculty Service Award: Charles Conley and Allen Mann
• Outstanding Adjunct Award: Vanessa Reams and Christy Twist

Congratulations to Joseph Iaia, who has received the MAA's Ron Barnes Distinguished Service to Students Award.

Graduate Awards and Scholarships

• Outstanding Graduate Student: Colin Lawson
• Academic Excellence Award: Hamid Naderiyan
• Outstanding Teaching Fellow: Houston Schuerger.

Houston Schuerger has also received this year's university wide Outstanding Teaching Fellow/Teaching Assistant Award from the Faculty Senate. Congratulations, Houston!

• John Ed Allen Scholarship: Mercedes Byberg
• Dan Mauldin Scholarship: Zachery Nadeau
• John Neuberger Scholarship: Jon Erickson

Undergraduate Awards and Scholarships

• Outstanding Undergraduate Student: Andrew Sansom
• Outstanding Student in Actuarial Science: Jonathan Clark
• Outstanding Math Lab Tutor: Tobey Mathis

• David Dawson Scholarship: Christian Doak
• E.H. Hanson Scholarship: Cameron Bernstein
• Roger L. Perry Scholarship: Brendan Gunnoe
• Ram Lal Seekri Scholarship: Suja Tiwari