I received a B.S. in physics from the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign in 1969, and spent the next eight years as a computer
systems software specialist for Roper Corporation, a manufacturer of
home appliances and lawn care equipment based in Kankakee, Illinois.
After returning to the University of Illinois for graduate work, I
received my A.M. in statistics in 1983 and my Ph.D. in mathematics in
1984. Beginning in 1983, I spent nine years on the mathematics faculty
of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston before joining the Michigan
faculty in 1992. From June 2002 through August 2004 I was on leave to
the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley to serve as
Deputy Director, but have now returned to the University of Michigan
where I serve as Professor of Mathematics and Associate Dean for
Undergraduate and Graduate Education for the College of Literature,
Science, and the Arts.
My thesis was in functional analysis, specifically in nearest-point
properties of sets in normed linear spaces, and my research interests
center on problems related to rotundity and smoothness in Banach spaces.
I have a book on introductory Banach space theory that has been
published in Springer's Graduate Texts in Mathematics series.
I have also been very involved in the problems of minority mathematics
education, especially that of Native Americans. I am a Sequoyah Fellow
of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, and work
actively through the programs of this organization to further the
participation of my people in mathematics. In particular, until recently
I spent about one month every summer conducting mathematics enrichment
programs for Native American students and their teachers at various
sites, particularly on the Turtle Mountain Chippewa reservation in North
Dakota.
I would be happy to discuss Banach spaces, the participation of
minorities in mathematics, or mountain climbing (another passion of
mine) with anyone interested. My contact information in the Mathematics
Department is given above, and when I am in the Dean's Office (6525
Haven Hall) I can be reached at (734) 764-0320.
