REU Site: Algebra, Graphs, and Number Theory at the University of Texas at Tyler

University Of Texas At Tyler, Tyler TX

Investigators

Abstract

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). This project will support the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) site in mathematics at the University of Texas at Tyler. The 8-week program will take place in the summers of 2022, 2023, and 2024. Each summer, ten students will work in groups of three with one faculty mentor leading each group. The program focuses on building confidence of student participants and preparing them to go on to pursue careers in mathematics. The REU will have a greater effect by recruiting students from underrepresented groups. In particular, Hispanic students, women, and first-generation college students will be recruited. The mentors for the REU site at the University of Texas at Tyler will provide research questions that are accessible to undergraduates, yet interesting to working mathematicians. The goal is to provide participants the opportunity to conduct original research leading to publication in professional journals. The research projects are in the areas of abstract algebra, graph theory, and number theory. All topics will be accessible to students who have taken early proof-based courses in their major. By the end of the eight weeks, REU students will write their results in a professional format and prepare a final talk and a poster suitable for presentation at conferences for mathematicians. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.