1.  Please tell us a little about yourself?

I am a product of UCA! I was an undergraduate student here from 2009-2013, and then a graduate teaching assistant from 2014-2016. I have been teaching at the high school level for 3 years, but I have been teaching for 6 years total. I got married in November 2017 and we currently live in Maumelle, Arkansas. I am addicted to traveling – 12 countries and counting! I bake – get ready for a bunch of cakes and stuff in the break room. I love Harry Potter and Game of Thrones, so I’m up for a discussion on that any time. And I love board games, especially Settlers of Catan!

2. Tell us about the courses that you would like to teach at UCA?

I would like to teach calculus-focused courses, but I also enjoy teaching courses such as College Algebra, Quantitative Literacy, and Trigonometry.

3. What are your teaching philosophies?

My teaching philosophy is that anyone can learn math, even if they are not very passionate about the subject. My job as an educator is to help students realize their potential and give them the proper tools and support to reach their goals. If students have a hard time understanding a problem, I try to think of 3 or 4 new ways to explain or approach the problem. It’s all about meeting students where they are at, and bringing them up to the level where they need to be.

4. What is your favorite part of your transition to UCA?

My favorite part of transitioning back to UCA is being able to see all my old professors and be in my old classrooms again. UCA feels like home to me, so it was really easy to come back and be part of it all again!

5. What is the most challenging part of your transition to UCA?

The most challenging part is remembering that I am a faculty member now, and that I am not a student (or grad student). Mostly I have to remember to call my fellow colleagues by their first names, because it seems strange to be so informal!

6. What are your future goals or plans?  

I hope to pursue a PhD at some point. I don’t have those plans figured out yet, but I can foresee that I will pursue something like that in the future.

This fall Dr. Yinlin Dong joined the mathematics department as an assistant professor in applied mathematics. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Arlington.

(1) Please tell us a little about yourself.
I did my undergraduate in China, where I worked in industry for two years. After that I came to the States and have been at the University of Alabama, University of Central Florida, and the University of Texas at Arlington. I live with my wife and two sons, Charles and Allen, and am now excited to join the family here at UCA!

(2) Tell us a little about your research.
I study numerical methods and grid generation. For example, there are methods for discretizing partial differential equations and solving them numerically. This discretization requires working on a grid of some sort, and I study how these grids should be constructed. A good grid allows solution methods to adapt to complex structures: the grid is fine in regions of large variation to enhance accuracy, but can be coarse where the solution has little variation in order to achieve efficiency.

(3) Can you give us an example of an application of this research?
One great example is in airfoils. NASA designs many of these, and they need to determine exactly how to shape them. In order to find the best shape, they need to solve physics problems and use numerical methods. My research applies to identifying the appropriate numerical method and corresponding grid generation approach to these problems.

(4) When did you become interested in your research?
Throughout school I knew I was going to focus on some kind of science or math. I had a particular high school teacher that really helped inspire me; ultimately it was my Ph.D. advisor that helped guide me into the field of numerical methods.

(5) Tell us about the courses you teach.
I teach both numerical analysis and numerical methods. Though sometimes confused with each other, numerical analysis is more theoretical and focuses on why methods work, while numerical methods focuses more on how such methods work. Right now being my first semester I’ve tried to keep my courses straightforward. In the future I hope to be able to get students involved more in projects and presentations.

(6) What is your favorite part of your position here at UCA?
Teaching is one of the best parts! I enjoy the moments of sharing the beauty of math with students. The environment here is quite flexible, and I’m still exploring the surrounding area.

(7) What is the most challenging part of your position here at UCA?
I have high expectation in student learning in upper level courses. But some students do not turn in assignments on time and are reluctant to ask questions. How do they expect to learn without putting their skills to practice? I am learning our students and our course settings. I will figure it out as the semester goes.

This fall Dr. Todd Abel joined the mathematics department as an assistant professor in mathematics education. He received his Ph.D. from the University of New Hampshire.

(1) Please tell us a little about yourself
I’m from North Carolina and recently spent time at Appalachian State University before coming to my new home here at the University of Central Arkansas. My wife and three kids have been getting settled over the past few months and have really enjoyed the outdoor life in Arkansas. We’ve gotten to camp, hike, and float already and look forward to continuing to explore.

(2) Tell us a little about your research interests.
My research focuses on two areas. One is on the classroom implementation of mathematical modeling, and the other focuses on mathematical digital literacy: how to use digital tools for doing mathematics. Both of these are important topics for us to consider because the ways students use math is changing – it is essential to have creative and flexible thinking. And with many available tools, students need to be able to recognize what tools are useful for solving problems.

(3) Tell us about the courses you teach.
Right now I’m teaching three courses. Foundations of Mathematics is a graduate class for our M.A. program, which is targeted at preservice and inservice teachers. We look at mathematical reasoning, logic, set theory, number theory, the nature or mathematical work, and have a particular emphasis on what proofs are and how they work.
The undergraduate courses I’m teaching are History of Math, which covers a broad spectrum of topics from throughout time, and Project-Based Instruction. The latter course I am co-teaching with a faculty member from the STEMTeach program. This is a course in which students gain field experience in local schools before their fulltime internship.

(4) What is your favorite part of your position here at UCA?
I really enjoy facilitating students engaging with challenging math problems. It’s great to see students encounter meaningful problems to overcome and to watch them grow as they take on tougher and tougher challenges.

(5) What is the most challenging part of your position here at UCA?
There are a lot of programs and structures to learn, so figuring out what all the policies and procedures are has definitely been the most challenging part so far.

(6) Who has influenced your most in your life?
My family – my parents, brother, sister, and now my wife and kids. My parents taught me to appreciate learning; my teachers and Ph.D. advisor, Dr. Karen Graham, also influenced me professionally by helping guide me through my schooling and into my career.

(7) How do you like to spend your free time?
When not here I’m with my family at home, at church or somewhere in the woods.