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Jessi Garrison has had a passion for math since she was in elementary school. Now, as a 2007 graduate and successful math major, she's ready to spread her love of math to younger generations. Garrison successfully completed a mathematics major and speech communication minor with a concentration in secondary education this past semester. She was a member of the Fritz Shurmur Education Institute.
"I would like to get a job somewhere, possibly in Madison, Wisconsin, but haven't really thought much about it yet," Garrison said. "I want to teach middle or high school math, preferably Algebra or Algebra II." On top of academics, Garrison was heavily involved in a wide range of extracurricular activities. She participated in the Newman Club (a Catholic organization on campus), Albion cheer and dance teams, tour guiding, and was a First-Year Experience mentor. She was also accepted into two academic fraternities, Alpha Lambda Delta and Kappa Mu Epsilon, an honors fraternity and an honors math fraternity, respectively. Garrison chose to attend Albion with her intended career as a teacher in mind. Because future educators at Albion generally graduate with their teaching certificates in less than five years, Garrison ranked Albion higher than her other prospective schools. She also cited Albion's size, the friendly, pretty campus and the personal attention students receive from professors as reasons for choosing Albion. Looking back, the reasons she chose the school were the things that helped her through her challenging major. "Overall, the math professors have been very helpful," she said. "They really want their students to understand and appreciate the value and applications of the concepts that are discussed in the various math classes. Most are even willing to stay late to help students out or come in on a weekend. It's easy to see that they want their students to be successful." One professor in particular, stood out to Garrison as the most influential. "Karla McCavit has always encouraged me when things get difficult or frustrating," she said. "She was the one who convinced me I should be a math major during Calculus in my first year at Albion. She's an excellent female role model, someone who I would like to be like someday to my students." Garrison also credits the help of her classmates in easing the difficulty of her math classes. "When I don't understand something I can almost always get help from another student," she said. "We had a great support group during late night homework sessions in the math lounge." Those study sessions proved to be one of Garrison's favorite experiences at Albion as well as mentoring for department chair David Reimann's First Year Seminar, Innovations in Imaging, which took her to Niagara Falls and the George Eastman House photography museum. Garrison has one important tip for future mathematics/computer science majors at Albion. "Use your resources, there are plenty out there: the Quantitative Skills Center, professors, other students," she said. "You are not alone nor are you the only one struggling. Don't be afraid to ask questions even if you feel like you are the only who doesn't understand." Garrison reflects fondly on years spent with the professors and students in the math and computer science department. "I've always been what most people would consider a math geek," she said. "It's been great getting to know professors and students in the math/computer science department who love math the way I do." Story by Calli McCain, `09. |
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