"SIAM event shows the fun side of Mathematics." - Dalton Sweat, San Marcos Daily Record.
This past semester, our chapter of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) at Texas State University hosted the inaugural Julia Robinson Mathematics Festival (JRMF) in San Marcos, Texas. We provided multiple math games like Skyscrapers, Cup Stacking, and Gerrymandering, as well as an assortment of exciting STEM clubs at Texas State, including the Math Club, Pi Mu Epsilon, SACNAS, and Bobcat Racing. Each club was staffed by volunteers from each student organization to help represent the diverse population at our university. They brought games and activities for all ages, with a fan favorite being the race car simulator provided by West Masone and Logan Mallow of the Racing club.
JRMF at Texas State University took months of planning, with funding generously provided by Dr. Barrett Bryant, Dean of the College of Science and Engineering, Texas State University, and Dr. Susan Morey, Chair of the TXST Math Department. The San Marcos Public Library provided the location for the event, as well as countless volunteers and marketing materials to support our event. We had volunteers from every corner of the university and city, with notable mentions being Mrs. Ashley Schimelman and Jennifer Jones-Kelley of the San Marcos Public Library, Drs. Alexander White, Cody Patterson, Timothy Chase, and Mrs. Ellen Couvillion from the Math Department, Michala Gradner, Eirian Whitson, Abdullah Kamal, Cameron Poole, Kristan Marku Beluso, and Ashok Paudel of our officer team, and all the other countless volunteers who made this event possible. An especially warm thank you to Dr. White for committing to supporting us for the full duration of the event, including setup and cleanup. Also, a special thank you to Mrs. Couvillion for providing food for all the volunteers out of the goodness of her heart.
Aside from volunteering, we had immense support from faculty at the university in the preparations for the event, including Drs. Lucas Rusnak, Iván Ojeda-Ruiz, Ph.D., Hiroko Warshauer, Piyush Shroff, and last but not least Mrs. Joanna Gutt-Lehr. Countless faculty and staff showed support by attending our event, including but not limited to Drs. Connor Albach, Ray Treinen, Gregory Passty, Yong Yang, Max Warshauer, and David von Miller, director of the H-LSAMP at Texas State University Scholars Program.
Not only was the event a success, with over 150 attendees of varying ages from as far away as San Antonio and Austin, but our team has been working with our department and college to ensure funding for similar events in future years. Spring 2025's event will be spearheaded by our two new directors, Michala Gradner and Eirian Whitson, who are also the returning President and Vice President of our university chapter. We cannot wait to see the magic they pull for next year's math festival!
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