Wednesday, March 9, 2011
The Clackamas Print 3
ath grant provides opportunities
By Brian Baldwin
News Editor
e you a math major? What about engineering? Does
etical math press the right buttons for you? Does
bought of 300- to 400-level math courses give you
rflies in your stomach? If you suffer from a one or
of these choices, then the math department here at
Lamas Community College may have the prescrip-
for you!
lackamas and Portland State University have
Led a $200,000 grant to develop a math course that
Simmons and Mark Yannotta, math instructors,
lling the “Bridge to University Mathematics.”
[that grant, CCC received $35,000, according to
otta. This course will help prepare students who
mathematics or engineering majors prepare for the
¡tion to 300- to 400-level mathematic courses taught
iversities.
e course is designed after Portland State University’s
Larsen’s Math-344 group theory curriculum. Larsen
notta’s PhD adviser, and he leapt at the chance to
both his goals and Yannotta’s.
e saw an opportunity for me to adapt his curricu-
for community college students in a way that was
stent with my larger goal of supporting transfer
ts. In general, there is very little research in math
tion on community college students, so by study-
is implementation, it was a win-win for both of
tated Yannotta in an e-mail. “Larsen consulted with
eekly the first time I implemented the curriculum
as interviewed Bruce as well. He has offered sug-
ns throughout the entire lifespan of the grant, but
ately, he has encouraged us to adapt the curriculum
deem appropriate.”
ording to Simmons, this course will primarily
t the math and engineering majors on campus who
know high level math.
is is a kind of course that is offered at probably
fall four-year institutions and not many two year
tions,” said Simmons. “A lot of students who are
into the science technology and engineering are
dto take one or two 300- to 400-level classes, and
lien a rough transition.”
wording to Simmons, the 300- to 400-level math
are more proof based and theoretical and the
Aments and graded work are very different than the
level that is taught at most two-year institutions,
tviously this class’s material has been taught by
I instructors over the past few years as Math-299 at
slow pace to give students a feel for the material,
'o years ago it was taught... ‘Let’s do half a term
Nathan Sturgess Clackamas Print
Mark Yannotta, a math instructor at Clackamas Community College, has been working toward getting a
math grant for some time now. He wants students at Cackamas to be able to work at a higher math level.
of Math-344 at a slower pace to get people acclimated.’ Research Steffen Moller, Yannotta, Simmons or whoever
Last year we started to dovetail additional material on will be the representative from the math department will
how to do proofs and number theory,” said Simmons.
have to present the details of the course such as what the
“We have run this course in various forms at CCC objectives are, why the department wants to offer this
since 2005. We have presented our work at our state con ’ course and what students are expected to get out of the
ferences and other community college instructors have course to name a few of the requirements.
been very supportive of our efforts; however, no school
And so Yannotta and Simmons still have work to do
has actually produced a course like this mainly because before they present the course design to the college.
they don’t think they will get enough students to make
“We need to make one more pass at revising the cur-
the class run on a consistent basis,” stated Yannotta.
rculum this spring and then present it to the college’s
This course does not align with any required courses curriculum committee early next fall,” stated Yannotta.
at other schools so this course will be considered an “While Larsen’s curriculum forms the basis of the class,
elective, according to Yannotta. But because of the 30 to Bruce and I have adapted and supplemented some of it to
40 percent content overlap between this class and PSU’s better fit the needs of our students. Our class does not go
Math-344, Yannotta has received positive feedback as far into group theory as Math-344, but we go deeper,
from previous students that have taken the course that it because we can go slower and we are not required to ‘get
helped them adjust to the university level math.
through’ a prescribed list of topics.”
According to Dean of Curriculum, Planning and
G: Romance creates credibility
ue in student government office
tinued from Page 1
re is no official rule
ver,” Fava said.
y Brown, the adviser to
also backs Fava’s com
in the rules to in-office
“There aren’t any,” she
We’ve had, historically,
folks who have dated
ve been officers and/or
officials.”
a explained that she had
to do with Briare’s elec-
o office and that the deci-
as actually made by a
of officials on a panel,
was on the ASG panel
ted Briare, but it was a
ous decision from every-
iva also stressed that she
are had not been seeing
er before or during the
process.
No, I was not dating
g that process. As I’ve
fore, my role on student
ent has been my life
years now, and I won’t
or put that at risk in any
e or form,” Fava said.
s disagree, saying the
was, indeed, a conflict.
■/j ^ntly the members of
I Gwere made aware of the
I w relationship between
I hva (president) and Sean
I (vice president), which
ti
to the hiring process,”
u togwoong Han, an ASG
■ who recently resigned in
K
a letter to The Clackamas Print.
(See Letter to the Editor for the
full letter.)
Briare explained that he and
Fava started a personal relation
ship during the winter break
after his election.
David Kinsella, Political
Science Chairman of the
Hatfield School of Government
at Portland State University, said
that there may be a conflict of
interest if Briare didn’t qualify
and Fava made an exception
for him.
“It seems that the issue is
straightforward,” Kinsella stated
in an e-mail. “If the constitution
specifies qualifications for office
holders, including vice presi
dent, and if Mr. Briare does not
meet those qualifications, then
he should not have been per
mitted to run for office. Public
vote, non-public vote; tell the
students, don’t tell the students
- all of that is immaterial. A per
son should not stand for election
if she/he is not qualified to hold
the office.
“The question of a conflict
of interest is therefore mute.
Either the rules were followed,
or they were not. Now, if ...
Ms. Fava, the president, (has)
the authority to make an excep
tion to the election rules, and in
fact did so in order to make the
candidacy of Mr. Briare viable,
then indeed (her) personal rela
tionship with Mr. Briare would
Bon’t let tlje toolbes of jfenris f i gljt
jilone against corruption.
create a conflict of interest,
stated Kinsella.
When Briare was first elect
ed to his new position, there was
already debate about his qualifi
cations as he had not yet been on
ASG for two terms as stated in
ASG’s constitution whereas his
opponent, Sage Losh, had been
on the team for over a year.
Briare said he still believes
he can do the job because, “It
(the relationship) hasn’t affected
my work at all,” he said. “When
we’re here in the office, it’s
office time. My personal life,
and her personal life have noth
ing to do with the office.
“The reason I stepped up to
this position is because I thought
it would be for the benefit of the
team,” he said. “Even though
I have only been here for a
short period of time, I’m a team
player, and the team has always
come first for me. This is my
personal life and it has nothing
to do with the team. Just because
we work in the same office it
doesn’t change where my focus
is. When I’m here, I’m giving a
110 percent to the team; (I’m)
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or come by office at Dye 139.