Author: Michael

UConn Math Department hosts Eastern Regional MATHCOUNTS competition

The UConn Math Department hosted our fourth-annual Eastern Connecticut MATHCOUNTS competition on Saturday, February 21, 2026. This is an official part of the National MATHCOUNTS competition (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathcounts). We have hosted the Eastern Connecticut Regional competition for several years now, and it has been supported by the Department of Mathematics and UConn’s CLAS. This year we had more than 100 middle school students (mathletes) registered to compete from 13 middle schools. In addition to the competition itself, the day featured a welcome message from the CLAS Associate Dean for Research and Strategic Initiatives, Derek Houston, and a presentation by UConn’s PhD alum, Lisa Naples, Fairfield University, and a trivia competition. The event would not be possible without many volunteers from the Math Department and members of UConn’s Alpha Phi Omega.

Math Department sponsors Connecticut Science Bowl Competition

UConn Math sponsored the Connecticut Science Bowl Competition held on Saturday, February 28, 2026 at Monteith and at Susan H Herbst Hall at the Storrs UConn campus. More than 200 students from across the State of Connecticut gathered to compete in a quiz bowl style competition. Topics included Math, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Astronomy, Earth Science, and General Science. Students are not permitted to use calculators; only their skills, intuition, and scrap paper. This year’s winners are

Connecticut 1st Place: Greenwich High School – Team 1
Connecticut 2nd Place: Farmington High School – Team 1

House Competitive Tournament 1st Place: East Lyme High School – Team 1
House Friendly Tournament 1st Place: Loomis Chafee – Team 3

They will represent the State of Connecticut at the National Science Bowl Competition April 30 – May 4, 2026
https://science.osti.gov/wdts/nsb

Ralf Schiffler and George Yin named Fellows of the AMS, Class of 2026

I am absolutely delighted to announce that two (2) of our department faculty members have been named Fellows of the American Mathematical Society, Class of 2026! They are:

 
In an email from the AMS, Ravi Vakil, President of the AMS, said: “I am honored to congratulate the 2026 Class of AMS Fellows. Their research and service endeavors help ensure the health of the mathematical sciences on a daily basis. AMS Fellows are selected from a substantial pool of accomplished candidates. Their collected achievements highlight the many ways individuals devote themselves to our beautiful and essential subject. I am proud to work alongside them to support and advance our discipline.”

 
For more, please see the news announcement:

 
Congratulations, George and Ralf!
 
Ambar

UConn Math Department Annual Awards Day

The Mathematics Department held its annual Awards Day event on April 25, 2025. This is the day when the department celebrates the achievements of our students. The event featured: the annual initiation ceremony for 12 new Pi Mu Epsilon society inductees; awards recognizing successes in the Putnam Competition and the department’s Stuart Sidney Math Competition; the Cigna Award for Outstanding Actuarial Science Major; the Connie Strange Graduate Community Award; the Louis J. DeLuca Memorial Award; and the Michael Neumann Dissertation Award. The event was held in Monteith Building at the Storrs campus. Congratulations to all the winners!