The general aim of the project is to increase the representation and performance of students from under-represented minorities in Mathematics. We plan to work on this from different directions: via the continued development of the Geometry Lab, a lab where students explore mathematics with hands-on projects, and via the development of a class, built from the “Humanizing Mathematics” class that I created for the Engagement program, but expanded into a full semester class. I also hope to include in this new class a Community Engagement aspect, partnering with Lucy Montalvo, Traci Brooks and DeVon Wade from the Equity Center and Star Hill Pathways, a system of support for local youth from historically marginalized communities. This build on an already established and successful partnership started in 2023-24 with the Geometry Lab. We hope this new introductory class will allow students to experience Mathematics in a less traditional way, but in a way closer to the way that researchers in Mathematics see the subject: via hand-on activities, building on a path of explorations, developing curiosity, learning to deal with struggle and seeing struggle as a normal step in the learning process. We also hope the students will reflect on the subject, and the longstanding societal biases that too often drive people away and make people feel Mathematics is not for them, as they are “not Math people”. We also hope to survey the past and current students to learn how much these programs have impacted their views of Mathematics and their decisions and career path in college and beyond.

*supported by Undergraduate Education in the Provost Office