NYSMATYC Committees

Much of the work of NYSMATYC has been accomplished through its committee structure. The first standing committees of the organization---formed in 1968---and their corresponding chairpersons were:

    Curriculum Committee:                       Abe Weinstein (1968-70)    
    Student Placement Procedures:          Cal Lathan    
    Publications:                                      Frank Avenoso & George Miller
    Exchange Teacher Program:               Robert Burghardt (1968-73)
    Articulation:                                       Sam Mclnroy (1968-72)
    Employment Register:                        John McCreight

As the objectives and areas of concern of the organization became more clearly defined, some committees were abolished and others were created. By 1973, the standing committees which exist today had been created. These include the Articulation, Awards, Curriculum, Legislative, Nominating, Scholarship, and Summer Institute Committees. The Awards and Nominating Committees are chaired by the Past President. The chairpersons of the remaining committees are appointed on an alternating basis at the annual meeting by the incoming president and are members of the Executive Board.

A description of the current duties of each committee chairperson and the objectives/purpose of each committee is found in the NYSMATYC POLICY MANUAL, a publication of the NYSMATYC Executive Board. The following is a summary of the activities of the Curriculum, Legislative, and Scholarship Committees. The endeavors and accomplishments of the Articulation, Awards, Nominating, and Summer Institute Committees will be discussed later in this document.

Curriculum Committee

The goals of the Curriculum Committee were first articulated in a committee report by Chairman Ken Fogarty (1970-73, Bronx Community College). These included the following:

• to study and evaluate mathematics curricula in two-year colleges,
• to call attention to innovative techniques of mathematics instruction and to new math programs,
• to suggest the adoption of academic policies viewed as vital to the improvement of mathematics education.

The Curriculum Committee was very active under the leadership of Ken Fogarty. Perhaps the most important accomplishment was the development of a report of "Proficiency Levels of Mathematics of Junior College Graduates," in which core mathematics was defined. The committee recommended that no degree be granted to a student unless he/she had satisfactorily demonstrated mastery of core mathematics. The essence of the report was presented as a NYSMATYC resolution entitled Minimum Competency in Mathematics of Community College Graduates in 1980. A report on "Liberal Arts Mathematics" was also prepared during Fogarty's tenure.
A remedial math subcommittee of the Curriculum Committee (chaired by Dorothy Buerk, Genesee Community College) was established in 1973. When Kathy Herberman (1973) resigned as Curriculum Committee Chairwoman, Dorothy Buerk was appointed and the Executive Board suggested that remedial mathematics become the major concern of the Curriculum Committee. During the period 1973-1977, the committee published a highly informative remedial mathematics newsletter. The newsletter was called The Informat from 1976-1977. Dorothy Buerk and Jerry Lieblich (Bronx Community College) served as editors of the newsletter and committee chairpersons for consecutive two-year terms.

The Curriculum Committee has undertaken several surveys under the leadership of the following:

Norbert Oldani (1978-1980, Mohawk Valley Community College)
Jerry Smith (1980-84, Cayuga Community College)
Sadie Bragg (1984-1984, Borough of Manhattan Community College)
Carolyn Richbart (1989-1990, SUNY Albany)
Norayne Rosero (1990-1992, Mohawk Valley Community College)
Denise Carter (1992-1996, LaGuardia Community College)
Diane Phelps (1996-1998, Sullivan Community College)
Carol W. Stewart (1998 – 2000, SUNY Agricultural Technical College)
Jodi Cotten (2000 – 2004, Westchester Community College)
Sean Simpson (2004 – 2006, Westchester Community College)
Timothy Grosse (2006 – present, Jefferson Community College)

NYSMATYC Surveys

• Mathematics Requirements for Elementary School Teachers (1979)
• Minimum Mathematics Requirements (1980)
• Mathematics Lab (1981)
• Calculator and Computer Usage (1981)
• Computer Usage and Instructors' Attitudes
• Mathematics Courses Required in the First Two Years of the Computer Science Curriculum (1984)
• Distinction Between College-Level and Pre-College Mathematics (1985)
• Use of Microcomputers in Mathematics (1986)
• College Offerings to High School Students (1987)
• Preparation of Junior High School Mathematics Teachers (1988)
• Calculator Use in Mathematics Courses (1990)
• How Individuals are Responding to the Mathematics Reform Movement (1991)
• Reaction to the AMATYC Proposal Concerning Minimal Competencies for Arithmetic (1991)
• Developmental Mathematics Courses Offered in New York State Two Year Colleges (1993)
• Hiring Practices of Part-time Mathematics Faculty (1993)
• How is the Membership Addressing AMATYC's Standards at Our Colleges (1995)
• Distance Learning (1997)
• New York State Board of Regents Initiative – Math A, Math B(1998)
• Mathematics requirements for Elementary Education Students(1999)
• Liberal Arts Math Courses (2001)
• Distance Learning Courses (2002)
• The Calculus Curriculum (2003)
• How do two-year college mathematics departments implement a comprehensive assessment of student learning outcomes for various types of mathematics courses? (2004)
• Statistics Courses (2005)
• Developmental Mathematics (2006)
• Community College Mathematics Courses taught in High Schools (2007)

Many of these surveys resulted in NYSMATYC resolutions that were adopted by the membership and sent to the appropriate individuals. These resolutions are discussed later in this document.

In the spring of 1991, the Computing Curriculum subcommittee was formed to keep the Executive Board and NYSMATYC membership updated with the issues and recommendations of the Association for Computer Machinery (ACM). The Executive Board approved the appointment of Karl Klee to coordinate the activities of this subcommittee. John Impagliazzo has served with Karl on this important subcommittee.

Legislative Committee

The Legislative Committee became a standing committee in April 1973 and was charged with the responsibility of updating the Constitution and By-laws. John Hanevy (SUNY Cobleskill, 1972-1975), did the formidable task of revising and clarifying the Constitution and By-laws so that the language was more in accord with language customarily used in such documents. The revision also detailed the duties and functions of NYSMATYC officers and committees. In 1973, the committee's charge was expanded to include the “management" (editing, presentation at annual meetings) of all resolutions. In 1974, the Executive Board gave John a vote of "appreciation for a monumental job."

In 1975, under the leadership of Robert (Charlie) Knapp (Herkimer Community College, 1975-1979), the committee was asked to aid the Executive Board in keeping abreast of influencing legislation and executive actions that directly affected the quality of mathematics education in New York State. The first activity was to investigate the mathematics requirements for certification in teaching K-12 in New York State.

Currently, the Legislative Committee is responsible for the meticulous task of maintaining and preparing updated copies of the NYSMATYC Constitution and By-laws, the NYSMATYC Personnel Directory and the Policy Manual of the Executive Board. A comparison of the current Constitution and By-laws with the original 1967 document (see Appendix) reveals the extensive evolution that this document has undergone. The Personnel Directory provides a valuable communication link between members of the organization.

One of the tasks of the Legislative Chair is to keep and update the policy manual, which contains a list of responsibilities and a time line for each board member.  It also contains information about the annual and regional conferences, as well as scholarship and contest criteria.

The Legislative chair is also responsible for reviewing the Constitution and publishing the personnel directory in odd-numbered years.

The following individuals are applauded for their service as Chair of the Legislative Committee:

Mary McCarty, Sullivan Community College, 1980-1984
Adelle Wightman, Clinton Community College, 1984-1986
Carol Mangefrieda, Genesee Community College, 1986-1987
Carolyn Richbart, SUNY Albany, 1987-1989
Maryann Justinger, Erie Community College, 1989-1991
Peter Herron, Suffolk Community College,1991-1993
Dona Boccio, Queensborough Community College, 1993-1997
Westley Ostertag, Dutchess Community College 1997-1999
Anne Landry, Dutchess Community College 1999-2000
Trish Lanz, Eric Community College 2000-2005
Sue Kutryb, Hudson Valley Community College 2005-present

Scholarship Committee

The Scholarship Committee was formed in the spring of 1972 and Alice Berridge (Nassau Community College) was appointed chairperson. The purpose of the committee was to develop a procedure to annually recognize outstanding two-year college students in New York State with a concentration in mathematics or a related field. In April 1973, four awards, each in the amount of $100, were awarded:

    Phyllis Summer, Rockland Community College
    Robert Mendel, Nassau Community College
    Patricia DeRuyter, Dutchess Community College
    Glen Francisco, Herkimer County Community College

In October 1973, Robert Burghardt was appointed chairperson and continued to refine the selection process. When Robert was elected president-elect in 1975, Helen Siner became the chairperson---a position she held until 1983. The scholarship award program was greatly expanded and enhanced under Helen's leadership. In recognition of her longstanding dedication, Helen received the Outstanding Service to NYSMATYC Award in 1985.

The number and amount of the awards have increased significantly over the years. In 1986, a total of $1900 was awarded to nine students. In addition, RIT, RPI, University of Rochester, Syracuse University, Clarkson, SL Lawrence University, and Union College have agreed to match our scholarship award for any recipients who attend their institutions. During the 1990s, the total amount of scholarships steadily increased from $1,900 to $4,000 by 1996. In 1996, nine students were awarded scholarships in recognition of their achievements in mathematics. Our membership should be very proud of the organization's effort in this very important endeavor.

In 1994, the NYSMATYC Executive Board created the Dan Dodway award. This special scholarship is to be used to recognize and honor the top mathematics student with an interest in teaching mathematics. The first recipient, in 1995, was Teresa Letkiewicz, Onondaga Community College.

NYSMATYC has been very fortunate to have individuals willing to serve as the Scholarship Committee chair with great zeal and enthusiasm. Special thanks are extended to each of the following:

Dan Hoover, Coming Community College (1983-1985)
Ernie Danforth, Coming Community College (1985-1988)
Joan Page, Onondaga Community College (1988-1993)
Rick Patrick, Adirondack Community College (1993-1997)
Jane Covillion, Onondaga Community College (1997 – 1998)
Ralph Bertelle, Columbia-Greene Community College (1998 – 1999) 
Terri Gauthier, Finger Lakes Community College (1999 – 2001)
Abe Mantell, Nassau Community College (2001 – 2003)
Sheela Whelan, Westchester Community College (2003 – 2005)
Howard Sporn, Queensborough Community College (2005 – present) 

NYSMATYC  has awarded a total of $86,650 in scholarships from 1973 to 2007.  The following chart shows the distribution of scholarship amounts by campus.

Webmaster

At the 1998 annual conference, Abe Mantell of Nassau Community College approached the executive board suggesting that NYSMATYC has its own webpage, and volunteered to create and maintain the page.  The board agreed, and a short time afterward the NYSMATYC web-page was born.  The webpage was hosted on a server located at Nassau CC (www.polar.ncc.edu/~nysmatyc) until 2002 when Ken Mead of Genesee CC became co-webmaster.  Ken registered the URL www.nysmatyc.org and moved the host server to his campus at Genesee CC.  Ken's expertise in webpage design and web hosting made him the logical choice for webmaster.  In 2003 Ken became the sole webmaster and has done a wonderful job ever since!