Janice Sklensky
Assistant Professor of Mathematics
Degrees
Ph.D., M.S., Northwestern University
A.B., University of California, Berkeley
Main Interests
Learning connections between math and other fields-- especially art -- and having "that is so cool!" moments. Talking about things mathematical and things not-mathematical with my husband. Spending time with my kids and watching them become young adults. Reading (mostly mysteries), gardening, exercising.
Research Interests
For my dissertation, I studied Commutative Ring Theory and Homological Algebra. Now, I'm spending time learning about the connections between math and art, as I mentioned earlier.
Teaching Interests
Teaching my students how to read, learn, and do mathematics. I try to have them actually do some math during nearly every class meeting, rather than simply listening to me lecturing the whole time. I also often have the students solve relatively realistic, open-ended problems and describe their solutions in everyday language.
Student Projects
I almost always assign projects in my classes. In Math and Art, the students choose between a number of projects: some involve creating art using mathematical concepts, others involve analyzing existing art mathematically, and a few involve writing reaction papers to articles or books. In Calculus I and II, I give the students open-ended questions (in other words, realistic problems which can be solved in a variety of different ways) and ask them to, as a group, solve the problem and write a letter describing the solution to someone who is not an expert in that subject. And in Abstract Algebra, the students have individual semester-long projects to help make the material more concrete.