A point of pride for UMKC:
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Three years ago, the odds were not good that UMKC’s mathematics and statistics department would survive. In the middle of the 2002-2003 academic year, half of the department retired. The faculty dropped from 15 in 2000 to 5 in January 2003. Morale was low. It certainly would have been considered a long-shot for the department to transform into a reinvigorated force of collaboration, high spirits, aggressive networking and, well, outright fun. So what happened?
Sometimes the long-shot wins. This was one of those times.
Two new faculty were hired in late 2003, and then they were 7. At that moment, this tiny but energetic department began a vigorous internal revision of every course and every policy, and an external reawakening of their connections to the rest of the UMKC community. From an exceptional new department web site to the quality of teaching, they strode forward with energy, re-examining every aspect of their department and its role. After a year and a half in this pursuit, they began to earn the respect of the community, and were able again to hire two more faculty in 2005, including a new chair
The new chair at the helm, Kamel Rekab, arrived in August 2005 and was formerly of both the Department of Computer Science and the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Florida Tech in Melbourne, FL.
Bearing a striking resemblance to actor Tony Shalhoub of the Monk television series, Dr. Rekab impresses from the first handshake and smile. There’s no warmer, more genuine person around. He’s driven by a passionate commitment to make math practical for all students. He wants to bring more grants to campus. He’s extremely proud of the faculty and envisions the department working collaboratively with other academic units. Within a couple months of his arrival, he had his first meeting with the school of Nursing, Medicine, and Computing and Engineering to explore how biostatistics can play a bigger strategic role in UMKC’s commitment to being a life sciences leader.
Dr. Rekab was tapped this year to serve as vice president of the Kansas-West Missouri chapter of the American Statistical Assn. and is on track to serve as president in a couple of years. The association has 17,000 members and is the largest professional statistics organization in the world.
He’s excited to be leading – and growing – the department’s talented faculty, who are working with growing numbers of undergraduate and graduate students (the Master’s and Ph.D. program have both been restarted). The faculty is internationally diverse (one each from Algeria, Bulgaria, Korea, Romania, two from China, and three Americans) and so has a broad spectrum of experience to draw upon.
Meet the Department of Mathematics and Statistics Faculty:
1. Kamel Rekab – professor, chair
2. Jie Chen – associate professor, graduate coordinator/adviser
3. Richard Delaware – associate clinical professor
4. Eric Hall – assistant professor
5. Noah Rhee – associate professor, undergraduate adviser
6. Rebecca Roberts – lecturer, college algebra coordinator, GTA supervisor
7. Liana Sega – assistant professor
8. Hristo Voulov – assistant professor, calculus coordinator
9. Yong Zeng – associate professor
Of special note are Jie Chen’s work in bioinformatics and biostatistics as well as Yong Zeng’s work in mathematical finance, both now funded by National Science Foundation and other grants. Another special note is that Becky Roberts won the 2004 Dean's Outstanding Teaching Award for Non-Regular Faculty. In addition, the other members of the department have emerged as a primary force in the renewal of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics forging strong connections across UMKC. In the near future, the department will be adding more biostatisticians and creating a Center for Biostatistics to serve the UMKC and Kansas City community.
Here are just a few of the other hallmark accomplishments that make this department a point of pride for UMKC:
•Internal atmosphere is fresh, friendly and enthusiastic
•Open to collaboration and cooperation with other units on campus
•Added great new faculty (2 talented biostatisticians are joining them in Fall 2006)
•Vibrant community of students
•Added seven new “Mathematics for Teachers” courses in collaboration with the School of Education
•In past few years numerous awards have gone to mathematics students including: Kristin DeBolt, Melissa Menning, Carrie Andersen, Heath Yates, Samantha Reynolds, Newlyn Walkup, Karla Childs, and Breanne Volkerding
•A series of expository talks engage mathematics students
•Started Mathematical Association of America Student Chapter
•Completed revised undergraduate courses, created several new courses
•Created a long-needed sequence of Mathematics Entrance Tests
Enthusiasm…hard work…talent and dedication…the leadership finesse of Dr. Kamel Rekab…and vibrant faculty, staff and students eager to make things happen…at UMKC, it adds up to a new day, new promise, and a vital campus role for the Department of Mathematics and Statistics.
