Academics > Majors and Areas of Study > Mathematics and Computer Science > Past Commendations > 2002



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2002
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January 2002 Big Day for the Putnam Team On Saturday, December 1, 2001, four Thiel students participated in the annual William Lowell Putnam Mathematics Competition sponsored by the Mathematical Association of America. They were (standing left) Daniel Svirbly, (stading right) Tiffany Goble, (sitting left) Nicholas Lias and (sitting right) Jonathan McElhaney. Once again there were twelve really challenging problems to solve over six hours of gruelling labor. As usual, the results of the exam won't be known until some time in the spring. However, this year's team members were very hopeful of scoring more points than usual. Top

February 2002 Congratulations Graduates This month we commend our students who graduated on December 16, 2001. They are Sarah Iddrisu (left) and Tomoko Tsukiyama (right). Sarah came to Thiel from Ghana and graduated with an AA degree in Management Information Systems and a BA in Political Science. Tomoko came to us from Japan and graduated with a BA in Mathematics. These students were a joy to have at Thiel for two special reasons. As students in mathematics and computer science courses they were important assets to the academic programs in this department, and as international students they contributed significantly to the multicultural atmosphere of Thiel's campus. We congratulate these students for their successes and wish them well in their future plans. Top

March 2002 Distinguished Teacher Award The department is delighted to recognize Professor Judith Newton who was presented with the Distinguished Teacher Award at Thiel's Founder's Day convocation, February 7, 2002. Each Founder's Day Thiel honors one of its professor's for his or her teaching excellence. Professor Newton began her career at Thiel College in 1971 when she assisted with the college's computer science courses. After serving as a part-time lecturer in mathematics during 1971-1972, Professor Newton was appointed Instructor in Economics and Business Administration in 1973. She earned the rank of assistant professor in 1979, associate professor in 1982, and professor in 1991. Professor Newton, who earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Santa Clara in California, holds master's degrees from the University of New Mexico and the University of Pittsburgh. She served as the Thiel College Assistant Academic Dean from September 1994 to June 1996. S he created and presented a series of workshops on alternative teaching strategies in a college curriculum, ethical issues in teaching, and cooperative learning. In 1997 she received the President's Award for Teaching Excellence. Professor Newton also oversaw the first phase of the computer network project that brought Internet access to Thiel College. Active in the community, she has been involved with the Greenville Literacy Council and the American Association of University Women. A resident of Greenville, she has one daughter, Marguerite. We are proud of the excellent service that Prof. Newton has provided to students. Top

April 2002 Contest Winners This month we commend the winners of the inaugural Problem of the Week Contest that took place during the Fall, 2001 semester! Pictured above are two of the prize winners who also happen to be among Thiel's finest students; senior Tiffany Goble and sophomore Zane Arbuckle. Tiffany won first prize for the junior and senior contestants with Thian Eng Tan the runner-up. Zane won the runner-up prize for freshmen and sophomore contestants with Nicholas Lias the winner of first prize. All submitted well thought out and superbly crafted solutions. For your achievement, we in the Department of Mathematics & Computer Science and all of Thiel College salute you! Top

May 2002 Congratulations Scholarship Winners! We in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science have the privilege each year of choosing two students to receive scholarships. The George and Magdalene Skegas Scholarship for Mathematics was established by Karolyn Skegas Krial '43 in memory of her parents. The winner of this $1000+ award for 2002-2003 is senior Jonathan McElhaney (on the right in the above photo). Jonathan has completed the requirements for a mathematics major and will return in the fall to complete the student teaching phase of his secondary certification. The Nathan Warren Harter and Besse Roseberry Harter Scholarship was established as a memorial to Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Harter to encourage Thiel students in the study of mathematics or Latin. The amount of this scholarship varies from year to year depending on the prevailing interest rates, but this year an award of a little over $400 was made to junior Erin Kelly (on the left in the above photo). Erin is an actuarial studies major with an enviable GPA and a bright future ahead of her. Top

June 2002 Congratulations Graduates! This month we commend the eleven students who earned degrees from this department on May 11, 2002. Homer Bloom (top row left) graduated Cum Laude with a BA in Management Information Systems, an AA in Accounting, and a minor in Computer Science. Amanda Devore (top row center) earned a BA in Mathematics. Tiffany Goble (top row right) graduated Summa Cum Laude and valedictorian from the Honors Program with majors in Mathematics and Chemistry, and received departmental honors in both majors. Curtis Greene (second row left) was a triple major; Accounting, Actuarial Studies, and Business Administration and received departmental honors in Accounting and Business Administration. Robert Hilborn (second row center) earned a BA in Actuarial Studies with a minor in Mathematics. Michelle Hinderliter (second row right) graduated with a double major; Actuarial Studies and Business Administration. Calvert Osborne (third row left) receive degrees in Actuarial Studies and Business Administration with a minor in Mathematics. Daniel Svirbly ( third row center) graduated Cum Laude with a degree in Mathematics and Secondary Certification. Thian Eng Tan (third row right) graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BA in Computer Science and an AA in Management Information Systems and received departmental honors. Stephanie Thornton (last row left) receive a BA in Art and an AA in Management Information Systems. Autumn Turk (last row right) earned a her degrees in Actuarial Science and Business Administration. We are proud of all of our graduates and wish them well in the future. NOTE: Photos courtesy of Chappell Graduation Images Aardvark Studios. Click on a picture to enlarge it. Top

July 2002 Great Grad School Offer! We are proud of all of our graduates, but particularly of Tiffany Goble. Not only did she graduated Summa Cum Laude and valedictorian with departmental honors in both math and chemistry, but she also received an impressive graduate school placement. Tiffany will be pursuing graduate work in applied mathematics at Georgia Institute of Technology, where she received a very generous financial aide package. We wish Tiffany well in her new studies, and we are sure she will be as s uccessful at Geogia Tech as she was at Thiel. Top

August 2002 Welcome to Thiel This month we welcome a new faculty member, Max Shellenbarger, to the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. Max earned his BA in mathematics and secondary education from Anderson College and his MA in mathematics from Ball State University. He has taught mathematics and computer science at the high school level for 34 years, and has also taught mathematics as a adjunct at Penn State University and at Thiel. Because of our experience with him here, we know he is an excellent teacher and we are very happy to have him join us as a full time lecturer in mathematics. Top

September 2002 Three Cheers for Three Presidential Scholarship Winners This month we are proud to salute three freshmen in the department who won full tuition Presidential Scholarships. They are, from left to right, Laura Glass, Melanie Cragg and Benjamin Wheeler. Laura plans to major in Actuarial Studies and Mathematics, with a minor in Accounting. She is the daughter of Ruth Glass of Gibsonia, Pennsylvania and Randall Glass of Sewickely Pennsylvania. She graduated from North Allegheny High School, where her greatest inspiration came from her math teacher Miss Hamilton and her Air Force Jr. R.O.T.C instructor Mst. Sgt. Denalt. Melanie is an Actuarial Studies major. Her parents are Richard and Linda Cragg of Abington, Pennsylvania. She is a graduate of Abington High School, where she says her most important mentor was her 11th grade math teacher, Mrs. O'Neal. Ben is a home town boy born and raised right here in Greenville, Pennsylvania and a graduate of Greenville High School. He plans to major in Computer Science and Mathematics. Ben is the son of Patti and Barry Wheeler, and he credits his Journalism teacher, Mrs. Kollar as being his most important guide to this point in his life. All three of these exceptional young people are participants in the Thiel Honors Program. We are very proud of these students and we are sure they will have interesting and successful futures at Thiel and beyond. Top

October 2002 Great Problem Solvers The Commendation of the Month for October goes to the winners of the Spring, 2002 Problem of the Week contest. Congratulations to Kota Fujiwara, Tiffany Goble, and Thian Eng Tan (not pictured) for finishing first, second, and third, respectively. The contest was especially exciting as the winner was decided on the last problem. Kota, not surprisingly, came up with a very sophisticated solution to the problem and Tiffany, for probably the first time in her life, found a nut she could not quite crack. Eng was not too far behind and, in addition to congratulations, gets special thanks for providing so many suggestions that improved the contest. All of us in the Math & Computer Science Department extend our congratulations to the winners and thanks to all who participated in the contest. Top

November 2002 Important Leadership Emerges The Commendation of the Month for November goes to the four women who are revitalizing the Mathematics and Computer Science Club. Kudos go to (pictured left to right) Amanda McKeehan (President), a junior mathematics major from Carlisle, Pennsylvania; Melanie Henthorn(Secretary), a mathematics and secondary education major from Wadsworth, Ohio; Rebekah Williams(Treasurer), a junior mathematics and secondary education major from Uniontown, Pennsylvania; and Nicole Demski(Vice-President), a junior actuarial studies major from Lawrence, Pennsylvania. A preliminary club meeting has already been held and plans for future meetings and activities have been discussed. It is hoped by this group that their efforts will eventually lead to the establishment of a mathematics honorary society at Thiel. Thanks to all four for their effort in these directions!! Top

December 2002 ACM Programming Smack-Down In late September this year, Computer Science students went at each other in a head-to-head programming competition for the privilege of representing Thiel College at the 2002 ACM East Central North America Regional Programming Competition held at Ashland University on Saturday, 9 November 2002. From our local contest we selected six team members and one alternate who then met weekly for a 2-3 hour (and occasionally longer) training session. After seeing team members in action on a weekly basis Prof. Andy Grover, team coach and advisor, formed the following three person teams: Thiel Gold (top photo, pictured from left to right): Joe Page of Laughlintown, PA; Matt Beacher of Exton, PA; and Joe Chastain Port Allegheny, PA. Thiel Blue (lower photo, pictured from left to right): Ivan "Farm Boy" Grimm of Scottdale, PA; Dan "Dr. Lecter" Heckert of Mt. Wolf, PA; and Ben Wheeler of Greenville, PA. In addition, Scott Free of Hadley, PA was selected as an alternate. After a two and a half hour trip to Ashland University (with proper programmer folk songs to while away the time) the two teams prepared well and were full of confidence after solving problems during the practice contest the night before the actual competition. The following morning our squads assembled for the contest between 131 teams representing 70 colleges and universities. The final results: Thiel Gold - 77th place, with one problem solved, cleanly beating such rivals as Allegheny and Slippery Rock (as well as one of the Ohio State University teams) in competition. Thiel Blue - 89th place, with no problems solved but a good effort nonetheless. We are proud of our students who put in the time and effort preparing for and participating in the contest. They represented Thiel College well. Top