REU-RET Site: Willamette Valley Mathematics Research Consortium for Undergraduates and Teachers

Willamette University, Salem OR

Investigators

Abstract

The Willamette Valley Mathematics Research Consortium for Undergraduates and Teachers is a summer REU-RET program at Willamette University, Linfield College, Lewis & Clark College, and the University of Portland. Our program consists of four research teams, one per partner institution, each with four students, one teacher, and two faculty mentors for an eight-week REU and seven-week RET. Each team will focus on one of four challenging research projects from a faculty mentors? area of expertise, such as matroid theory, graph theory, combinatorial game theory, stochastic modeling, artificial intelligence, tiling theory, complex algebraic geometry, computational biology, knot theory or digital sensor networks. Consortium meetings will bring together the four research groups regularly to speak about their projects, learn about the progress of their peers, listen to presentations by invited speakers from academia and industry, and network with other students and faculty. Recruitment for student applicants is nationwide and includes targeted recruitment from underrepresented groups in consultation with the Pacific Northwest Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation. Teacher applicants are recruited regionally in Oregon and southwest Washington. The primary goal of the Willamette Valley Mathematics Research Consortium for Undergraduates and Teachers is to immerse undergraduates and teachers in a challenging, transformative research experience that will reveal the nature of mathematics research. Throughout the summer undergraduates and teachers will develop new content knowledge, research skills, and an increased understanding of the process of mathematical discovery and research. Within their research teams and at Consortium meetings, participants will improve their ability to communicate current mathematical research in an effective and engaging manner. All participants will develop a greater awareness of career opportunities in STEM fields. As in previous years, REU research results will be disseminated through student co-authored publications, through public presentations, and online. Teachers will create materials to be used in the classroom and disseminated at professional meetings; the REU-RET provides partial funding for students and teachers to present at conferences. Through these program activities our broader goals are to increase the number of students who pursue advanced study and careers in STEM fields, increase the number of teachers with an understanding of mathematical discovery and research, and increase the effective communication of mathematical research.