Asbury Math Professor Selected for Professional Fellowship

July 7, 2023

The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) recently selected Associate Professor of Mathematics Dr. Ben McLaughlin as a Project NExT (New Experiences in Teaching) fellow for the 2023-2024 academic year. Project NExT is a professional development program for new or recent Ph.Ds. in the mathematical sciences that addresses teaching mathematics, research, service opportunities, and networking: https://www.maa.org/programs-and-communities/professional-development/project-next.

“I’m excited and thankful to be selected for the MAA Project NExT fellowship,” McLaughlin said. “I’m looking forward to the learning opportunity this fellowship will provide.”

“Dr. McLaughlin has demonstrated commitment to high quality teaching and student learning that is intentionally aligned with current research in the discipline,” said Provost and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Sherry Powers. “His participation in Project NExT provides exciting professional development opportunities and important ways to build supportive networks with professional educators. I am very pleased to see him selected for this program.”

After receiving his B.A. in Financial Mathematics from Asbury University, McLaughlin received his M.S. and Ph.D. in Computational Science from Florida State University. Following graduation, McLaughlin worked as a civilian scientist at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Panama City, Fla. His research interests include automated data processing and inference, numerical solutions of partial differential equations for modeling and simulation, and hardware-accelerated numerical methods in scientific computing.

“As a Project NExT fellow, I will be participating in several conferences and workshops throughout the year, which will provide opportunities to network with other early-career math educators and to improve our mathematics pedagogy by learning both from and alongside one another,” McLaughlin said. “It will be a great opportunity for me to improve my teaching skills by learning in a diverse community of mathematics educators.”

McLaughlin joined the Asbury University faculty in 2022.

“My favorite part of teaching at Asbury is the students,” McLaughlin said. “I enjoy getting to know students in class and around campus and sharing conversations with them about faith and everyday life in addition to conversations about mathematics.”

The Asbury University Department of Mathematics continues to prepare students for their careers and graduate school. This year marked Asbury’s 36th year of participation in the COMAP International Math Modeling Competition. Teams worked around the clock from Thursday, Feb. 16, until Monday, Feb. 20, 2023, to construct solutions to real-life problems. Teams submitted their papers to the COMAP competition.

The Asbury University Shaw School of Sciences offers 14 majors and six minors, including Mathematics, Actuarial Mathematics, Engineering Mathematics, and Mathematics Grades 8-12: asbury.edu/math.