Department of Mathematics and Statistics Newsletter 2015 Newsletter | Page 4

Faculty News, 2013-2015: Department of Mathematics and Statistics welcomes new faculty member, Hans-Werner van Wyk Hans-Werner van Wyk joined the faculty in applied mathematics, numerical analysis, last August. Van Wyk received his doctorate from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 2012. His dissertation was titled, “A Variational Approach for Identifying Uncertain, Distributed Parameters in Elliptic Systems.” From Virginia Tech, van Wyk went to Tallahassee as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Scientific Computing at Florida State University. Originally from South Africa, van Wyk earned both his master’s and bachelor’s degrees from the University of Pretoria. Faculty receive NSF grant Auburn University received a fiveyear grant from the National Science Foundation in the amount of $415,000 to launch an international collaborative research network (CRN) in mathematical sciences, under the leadership of Overtoun Jenda (top), Ash Abebe (center), and Pete Johnson (bottom). Faculty receive intramural grants Several faculty in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics received intramural grants. The Intramural Grants Program is a comprehensive and competitive grant program that supports faculty research and scholarship, professional development, programmatic projects, and creative works in all disciplines, and is designed to support faculty in becoming competitive in securing external funding and sponsorship. Recipients of the intramural grants are the following (pictured from top to bottom, and left to right): • Xiaoyu (Sophie) Li, IGP Level I • Junshan Lin, IGP Level I • Jessica McDonald, IGP Level I • Michel Smith, IGP Level I 4