University of Tennessee at Martin Mathematics and Statistics Department

🧡💙 Welcome, new Skyhawks!

The UT Martin Department of Mathematics and Statistics was excited to join today’s First Flight Frenzy and Freshman Walk to welcome the newest members of the Skyhawk family!

We’re looking forward to meeting our new students in the classroom and around campus as the Fall 2026 semester gets underway.

Welcome to UT Martin, Class of 2030! 🎓🦅

🧮 Math Craft Lab is back!

Thank you to Obion County Central High School for welcoming our Math Craft Lab team and for sharing these great photos!

Applications for the 2026–27 Math Craft Lab are now open, with applications due September 10. Apply here http://tinyurl.com/2kunustu

We’re looking forward to welcoming this year’s students to UT Martin! 🧡💙

🎉 A New Chapter for Dr. Bryan Sandor!

As we begin a new academic year, we’re excited to celebrate a new chapter for one of our own!

Dr. Bryan Sandor begins the 2026–27 academic year as a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Statistics at UT Martin.

Dr. Sandor is certainly not new to our department. A UT Martin alumnus who earned his doctorate from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, he began his career at UT Martin in 2019 and has served our students and department for several years as a lecturer.

This fall marks an exciting transition as Dr. Sandor begins his new role as a tenure-track faculty member. Many of our students and alumni already know him from his years in the classroom, and we are delighted that he will continue to be part of the UT Martin Mathematics and Statistics community in this new capacity.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Sandor and wishing him all the best as he begins this next chapter of his career! 🎊

Congratulations, Dr. Sandor! We’re excited for what’s ahead!

Just because school is out for summer doesn't mean all of our students and faculty are on break. This summer was exciting in the collaboration between students and faculty for undergraduate research!

Pictured below are (front, from left) Dr Jason DeVito, Dr Shalmali Bandyopadhyay, Dr Ezra Nance; (back, from left) Brandon Jones, Kyle Byassee, Hunter Johnson, Kimsear Lor, and Bailyn Hall. This summer they were sponsored by the Mathematical Association of America's (MAA) National Research Experience for Undergraduates Program (NREUP).

Kimsear and Bailyn worked with Dr Bandyopadhyay on discrete Prüfer transformation on non-uniform grids. Brandon, Kyle, and Hunter worked with Dr DeVito and Dr Nance on isoperimetric inequalities for polygonal domains.

Additional undergraduate research took place with Natalie Bayless and Arlena Ferrell, working together with Dr Curtis Kunkel and Dr Justin Sims on survival analysis.

Proud of our undergraduates and grateful for our faculty!

Congratulations to our Chair, Dr Steve Elliott, as a recipient of the very prestigious President’s Award!

“The President’s Awards represent the highest honor a UT employee can receive. Building on the many outstanding recognition programs at each campus and institute, this program celebrates exceptional faculty and staff from across the state. The awards spotlight success, elevate achievements and inspire a culture of excellence throughout the UT System.”

President’s Awards | The University of Tennessee System The UT President’s Awards honor outstanding faculty and staff who exemplify the university’s values and advance its mission across the state.

Dr. Robert DeYeso, assistant professor of mathematics and statistics, was selected to participate in the 2026 Doenet Community Workshop held June 1–5 at the University of Minnesota. As part of the competitive selection process, DeYeso received travel support to attend the workshop. Supported by the National Science Foundation, the workshop brought together secondary and post-secondary STEM educators from across the country to develop interactive educational materials using Doenet, an open-source platform for creating dynamic online learning activities. Participants collaborated on the development of instructional resources, educational technology tools, and strategies for improving student engagement in STEM courses. Through his participation, DeYeso contributed to a national community of educators focused on advancing innovative approaches to teaching and learning in mathematics and related disciplines.

Congratulations to our own Joan West! On Friday, 10 April, it was a full house for her successful defense of her University Scholars senior project, "Radio graceful Cartesian products of circulant graphs," under faculty advisors Dr Amanda Niedzialomski and Dr Lily Pharris. The presentation was interactive, with problems for the audience to enjoy working.

MATH CRAFT LAB OPEN HOUSE!!!

Join us as we celebrate the amazing work of our talented crafters from this past year!

Friday, April 17th
5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Latimer-Smith Lobby, UT Martin

Enjoy an evening of food, fun, and math as we celebrate student participation and contributions to the mentorship program and mathematical workshop series called Math Craft Laboratory at UT Martin. There will be a showcase of projects from this past year and mini-games for visitors to experience the fun of math.

Refreshments will be provided.

Faculty Highlight: Dr. Louis Kolitsch

Dr. Louis Kolitsch, Professor of Mathematics, was recently invited to present at the Gainesville International Number Theory Conference (Alladi 70), held at the University of Florida.

This international conference, organized in honor of mathematician Krishna Alladi’s 70th birthday, brought together researchers from around the world to share advances in number theory.

Dr. Kolitsch’s talk, “Partition Results Related to a Special Case of Jacobi’s Triple Product Identity,” explored results in partition theory using algebraic and combinatorial approaches.

📸 Pictured: participants at the conference

👀 Can you spot Dr. Kolitsch in the crowd? Comment below if you find him!

🎉 Celebrating Our Students at the 62nd Annual Honors Day!

We are proud to share that six of our Mathematics and Statistics majors were recognized at this year’s Honors Day celebration:

🏆 Kyle Byassee – Mathematics Award
🏆 Arlena Ferrell – Louis Knifley Memorial Scholarship
🏆 Natalie Bayless – Desireé McCullough Outstanding Student Award
🏆 Brandon Jones – College of Engineering and Natural Sciences Outstanding Student Award – Mathematics & Statistics
🏆 Joan West – Phi Kappa Phi Award
🏆 Kimsear Lor – Outstanding Freshman Engineering Award

👏 Congratulations to all of our award recipients! We are incredibly proud of your achievements and dedication.

(Pictured (L-R): Kyle Byassee, Arlena Ferrell, Natalie Bayless, and Brandon Jones. Not pictured: Joan West and Kimsear Lor.)