What happens when you make a gift to the Math Department?
Our students are awarded scholarships and provided with opportunities to enhance their educational experience beyond what we can normally provide in the classroom.
Scholarships
Student scholarships provide critical financial support to outstanding students, many of whom would not be able to continue their education without them. The Math Memorial Scholarship supports our math majors. The William Wade Haggard Scholarship Fund, named after WWU’s longest serving president, supports students majoring in mathematics education.
Conferences and Travel
Our highest-achieving students have multiple opportunities to travel and present their work throughout the year. These trips would not be possible without our generous donors.
Northwest Math Conference
Last year, several students attended the Northwest Math Conference in Tacoma, Washington. Math education students regularly attend and present their research at this conference, showcasing the high quality of their academic work. Their participation highlights the strength of the math education program and the commitment our faculty have to their students through co-presenting research.
Joint Mathematics Meeting
The Joint Mathematics Meeting (JMM) is the largest mathematics meeting in the world, and we were able to support travel for three students to attend and present their research this year in Washington, D.C.
Cayden L. presenting research at JMM
Cayden L. shares his experience attending and presenting at JMM in Washington, D.C.:
“Without the travel funds, I would not have been able to attend due to the high costs of hotels and flying across the country. So, I’m really grateful that I had the opportunity to attend this conference. I really enjoyed presenting my poster and gained a lot of confidence from it. It was helpful to hear other people’s feedback and ideas for future research. I also enjoyed hearing about research conducted by people from not just other states, but other countries as well. And to end the trip to D.C., we got to go around and see lots of historical monuments.”
Nebraska Conference for Undergraduate Wisdom in Mathematics
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln annually hosts the Nebraska Conference for Undergraduate Wisdom in Mathematics (NCUWM). For many years, we have been able to send a group of undergraduate math majors to attend and present their research at this conference, and this year we were able to send 3 of our math students. Attending this conference gives our math majors a chance to connect with a community that shares their experiences, meet role models, gain insider knowledge, and explore new research and collaboration opportunities.
From left to right, Cosette C., Chloe J., and Nora G.
Math student, Chloe J., shares her experience attending NCUWM:
“Thank you so much for supporting me, Nora, and Cosette in going to NCUWM! We had a great time and learned a lot. Cosette did a poster, and Nora did a presentation!”
Mathematics Department General Fund
In addition to travel, the Math Department General Fund helps support many essential needs in our department:
- Computer hardware and professional specialized mathematical software necessary for research and for preparing our students for technical careers.
- Materials for our math education lab, where future teachers learn mathematics content and pedagogical practices in an active learning environment.
- Support for activities of our student ambassador. Building community and helping students feel like they belong in the math program has been high on our priority list. Our ambassador has been hosting inclusive events and engaging with math majors and minors. The positive impact of these community-building events has been encouraging to see. More information about the College of Science & Engineering’s Student Ambassador program can be found here.
- Support for activities of student clubs and the Math Center, where students can get tutoring in calculus and more advanced math classes from the Math Fellows, outstanding undergraduate students who play a critical role in the department.
- Support for research visits and guest speakers.
Please consider donating to the Math Department for WWU Give Day 2026 to show our students that you believe in them and are invested in their success.
To find out more about what the Math Department has been up to, check out our most recent Newsletter.
