John Pieper, Carolyn Johns, Austin Mack, and Erin Anthony have been named as this year's recipients of the OSU Department of Mathematics Staff Awards.

has been the Administrative Manager for the Math Department since 2008. In this role, John both coordinates the staff and oversees the financial operation of the Department. As manager of the staff, he provides leadership and clear guidance to his co-workers and encourages their participation in all manner of professional growth opportunities. He is very effective at maintaining (and increasing!) office morale. His good humor, ability to listen, and wide range of experience enliven the workplace and make him a pleasure to work with.
 
John is a superb Financial officer for the Department. He is very knowledgable about all the financial resources and processes inside the University, and also has a keen grasp of the changes that occur in this landscape. He gives quick and expert responses to every question that arises concerning finances. In this capacity, he has earned the trust of the Chair and Vice-Chairs, and is their valuable counsel in matters of planning, budgeting, and implementation. John’s expertise in these matters is acknowledged beyond the Department: he was chosen by the ASC to give a presentation to the other departmental managers in the College this year, about both departmental and college-level finances.

Since joining the department in Spring 2013 as MSLC Assistant Director Carolyn has made significant contributions to improving the quality of the student undergraduate mathematics experience. She redesigned the MSLC tutor hire and professional development experience by requiring tutors to demonstrate proficiency before being hired, and to complete ongoing online math content training while tutoring their course. Carolyn has also played a vital role in Calculus redesign by teaching “Flipped and Flexible” Calculus and as a member of the Math Education Forum co-designing student surveys, investigating data analysis requirements, etc. Finally she actively worked with other MSLC staff members to redesign a room that is currently being used to teach Calculus 2 recitations in the active learning format.

Erin Anthony joined our department last year as the undergraduate program assistant. She brings a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to her position and serves as a trusted assistant to Tim Carlson and Bill Husen. Erin’s role has expanded to working with departmental data, including math course performance, math placement and undergraduate program outcomes. Erin also serves as the webmaster for the department and is the main person involved with monitoring and updating the department’s webpage. Finally Erin serves as the administrative assistant to the summer Ross Math Program where she handles of most of the logistics behind this prestigious program.

Austin Mack. Since joining our department a year ago as an academic advisor, Austin has already made his mark on the math advising office. Aside from advising math majors, Austin has served as the primary transfer credit reviewer. Austin has most recently been involved with coordinating the math minor with the various engineering programs. Austin has developed many lines of communication with other departments, the college and the university in working with advising issues. Finally Austin has been a primary contact with recruiting new students to the math major.
 

Congratulations John, Carolyn, Austin, and Erin!