From the Head
Greetings from Corvallis! As many of you know, I joined the OSU math department in January to serve as the new department head. It is a homecoming of sorts. I received my PhD at the University of Oregon and then spent the next twenty years hoping for an opportunity to return to the Pacific Northwest.
During my interview and subsequent visits to Corvallis, I learned about the many amazing things happening in the OSU math department. These include world-class research, innovative teaching, committed undergraduate and graduate student mentoring, service to the broader community, and impactful efforts to make math welcoming to all. I also learned that these activities are possible thanks in part to the generosity of the department’s many friends.
Six months in, I am ever more impressed by department members’ commitment to all facets of its mission. To misquote an old advertising slogan, the OSU math department does more in one quarter than most math departments do in an entire semester.
This newsletter can only provide some highlights of the past year. I encourage you to take a deep dive into our website. There, you will learn more about the many accomplishments, awards, scholarships, grants, and activities of our faculty and students. On the website, you can also keep up with the latest department news. Many exciting things are in the works and will be announced in the coming months. For one, we’ve hired fantastic new faculty --- there is no need to wait until our next newsletter to learn more about them!
On a more personal note, let me take this opportunity to express my deep appreciation for the welcome I’ve received from the entire community. In what must be Corvallis’s version of a baptism, colleagues recently took me on my first float of the Willamette River. I’m also grateful for all that my predecessors, Bill Bogley and Enrique Thomann, have done in service of the department. They and everyone made the transition to OSU remarkably smooth.
Leaving my friends and colleagues at the University of Oklahoma and moving halfway across the country wasn’t easy, but I haven’t regretted it for a second. I’m delighted to be here in Corvallis and part of this great department.
Jonathan Kujawa
Department Head, Mathematics
