Author: Anthony Adragna
Visiting Professor of Mathematics John Schmitt received the 2008 Perkins Award for Excellence in teaching. Schmitt and others celebrated the news with an award reception March 11.
The Perkins Award celebrates excellence in mathematics and sciences. It alternates between a member of the Mathematics Department and a member of one of the other five natural sciences annually.
Schmitt will have has name etched on plagues in both McCardell Bicentennial Hall and Warner Hall. The award also comes with a grant for future professional development.
Prior to his arrival at Middlebury, Schmitt earned his bachelor's degree from Providence College, his master's of science from the University of Vermont and his doctorate from Emory University.
Schmitt taught at Emory before coming to the College in 2005. His research interests include combinatorics, graph theory and discrete mathematics. At the College, he teaches calculus, graph theory, linear algebra and several courses on combinatorics.
He organizes Discrete Mathematics Days of the Northeast, an event that takes place at Middlebury. Schmitt also founded the Emory University Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics Student Chapter and served as president from 2003-2005.
Funding for the award comes from Dr. Ruth M.H. Perkins, a 1932 Middlebury graduate, in memory of her husband, Professor Llewellyn R. Perkins. Llwellyn Perkins taught at the College for over 20 years, where he founded and chaired the Mathematics Department. Ruth Perkins served as a professor at Temple University and as a Vermont educator.
middbrief Schmitt awarded annual Perkins Award in teaching
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