History | Charter | Guiding Principles

My recollections of the Mathematics Department at the University of North Texas as of 2000 --- a partial history by John Ed Allen

Note: If the reader sees corrections to be made in this document, please let me know at allenunt.edu. Thanks!

Mathematics has been a part of the curriculum ever since the University was established in 1890. In the early years, the faculty was not departmentalized with department chairs, but consisted simply of faculty who taught courses in their area of expertise. Faculty taught five classes each semester, and each class met five hours per week. The third president of the school, William Herschel Bruce, was a mathematics teacher. He became the president in 1906 and served for 17 years in that post, guiding the university through its formative years, implementing an administrative style that would be carried forward even to the present day: "I was elected President in October, 1906. At the first meeting of the faculty, I told them I wished them to know my vision. . . At the conclusion of the statement of my dream or vision, Professor Borden of the faculty said, "You must expect to live a hundred years!" I replied, "Not necessarily; but even if this should not be accomplished in my lifetime, we could prepare the way for our successors to realize what we plan." [from James L. Rogers' The Story of North Texas, page 52] Even now the faculty and students build "for " the future as they build "on" the past.

Departments with department chairs came into being in the late teens and twenties. Mr. Olin Millican (1906-1999), who gave a $100,000 endowment to establish the Millican Lecture Series for the Mathematics Department, completed his degree here in mathematics in the late twenties. He and I visited often. And he always spoke very kindly of his mathematics teachers. I recall that he talked about going to see "Dad Peters" for advice on which courses to take. But the earliest firm recollection of a department chair by those now living was Dr. Eugene Harold Hanson, who served as chair from 1935 until about 1957.

The story of how Mr. Millican began to make sizable contributions to the department may be of interest to some. It was in the early eighties that the department began receiving annual contributions from him, and the first included a letter in which he indicated that he wanted the funds be used to help students function more proficiently with numbers in real life. He told of having gone to the store to make a purchase, and the electronic register was not working. The clerk could not compute the sales tax and could not make change. He wished that all persons have an ability to be independent and confident in dealing with numbers. Later he became interested in our graduate program, and modified the intent of the fund (given in memory of his brother Roy McLeod Millican, a former high school math teacher) to support visiting lecturers. Mr. Millican was first cousins with the famous Whyburn brothers who studied with R. L. Moore and H. S. Wall at the University of Texas. Mr. Millican, who at the time was in his eighties, would reminisce about his cousins coming home and talking about point sets and topology and this seemed really neat to him!

The common thread or main stream which the Mathematics Department has followed since the very early years, and especially since the thrities, has been the recognition of the value and importance of research. Beginning in the early 1930's, Dr. Hansen persuaded the university librarian to begin subscribing to some of the world's finest research journals in mathematics. So that by the sixties and seventies, the library's journalholdings in mathematics was one of the finest in the country. Visitors from other more well-known institutions would find here what they could not find at their own libraries, and they were delighted. Even though the teaching load was fifteen hours per semester as late as 1964, research in mathematics was being accomplished by some of the faculty. Perhaps the most notable for research publications in that period were Dr. David Fleming Dawson and Dr. William David Love Appling. Other faculty were engaged in various levels of research as they directed students on master's degree theses, which all graduate students were required to do. The department was authorized to grant master's degrees in 1935 and the first master's degree was awarded to Roger Allen in 1937. The Ph.D. degree in mathematics was authorized in about 1968 and the first was awarded to Michael Keisler in 1974.

Recognizing that research was becoming an expected and essential requirement for the development of the department and for faculty advancement, deans in the College of Arts and Sciences eventually authorized teaching loads of twelve hours in about 1966, nine hours in the late seventies, and finally six hours in the late eighties. Another natural outgrowth of the research emphasis by the departmental faculty was a realization of the need to host and sponsor research conferences, to aggressively seek research grant support from NSF, NSA, DARPA, defense agencies, etc., to have both short-term and long-term visiting scholars, to support faculty travel to conferences and other institutions both here and abroad, to keep the math library intact and up-to-date, to appoint established research scholars to the faculty, and to appoint and tenure faculty whose potential for excellence in research would be clear. All of these things the departmental faculty has accomplished. The appointment of recognized research scholars began with Drs. John William Neuberger (who at the time was a tenured professor at Emory University), Richard Daniel Mauldin (a tenured associate professor at the University of Florida), and Robert Kallman (a tenured professor at the University of Florida). A host of others who had just completed the Ph.D. degree have been appointed along with a few who had been out of school a few years and who had established solid research credentials. Quite a few research conferences have been hosted by the department. The first of significance was the Scottish Book Conference in 1979. Two regional meetings of the AMS; several specialized research conferences on topics in analysis, differential equations, dynamical systems, algebra; and at least three meetings of the Texas Section of MAA have also been significant events for the department. A Joint Meeting of the American Mathematical Society and the Sociedad Matematica Mexicana (AMS/SMM) was held here at the University of North Texas in May 1999. This was the first time that this joint meeting was held in the USA. The AMS is the leading organization for research mathematicians here in the US and SMM holds the same position for mathematicians in Mexico. The department has been unusually successful in obtaining research grant support, with the total amount of grants in force each year generally totaling nearly $1 million. Scores of mathematical scholars have visited in the department over the years and have always been impressed with the library holdings as well as the warm and supportive reception given by our faculty and students. Of special note have been long term visitors Professor Gian-Carlo Rota of MIT and Professor Phil Griffith of the University of Illinois. Paul Erdos and Stanislaw Ulam were frequent visitors who came to work with and get acquainted with our faculty, as well as Professor Shizuo Kakutani from Yale University. Along with a cadre of internationally recognized research mathematicians on our faculty, the department has always enjoyed having a very active and energetic collection of young faculty who are working to build their own as well as the department's reputation as a leading research and teaching enterprise.

A partial listing of persons who have held faculty positions in our department, along with a list of our current faculty and their research areas can be found on the People page.

Coupled with the faculty's pursuit of excellence in mathematical scholarship has been the keen desire of the faculty to be effective and responsible classroom teachers. Instruction in mathematics has as its goal to enable students to think precisely and rigorously about questions and to use given information to solve problems. A quote from Proclus captures the essence of instruction here: "This, therefore, is mathematics: she reminds you of the invisible form of the soul; she gives to her own discoveries; she awakens the mind and purifies the intellect; she brings light to our intrinsic ideas; she abolishes oblivion and ignorance which are ours by birth." Mathematical research and applications of mathematics permeate instruction. It has been our passion to endow our students with knowledge, sharpen their mathematical talents, and inspire their creative nature. Lewis Carroll wrote: "It may well be doubted whether, in all the range of science, there is any field so fascinating to the explorer--so rich with hidden treasures, so fruitful in delightful surprises-- as Pure Mathematics." Mathematics for mathematics' sake! But it has also been our hope that students will appreciate and understand that mathematics can be the key to open many doors, that mathematics can successfully address crucial and vital problems that society faces. Faculty and students participate in a virtual kaleidoscope of real world applications of mathematics with a view toward advancing economies, providing for environmental defense, improving technology, and generally improving the world we live in. It is reported that Napoleon I said: "The advancement and perfection of mathematics are intimately connected with the prosperity of the State."

Graduate and undergraduate mathematics majors are vital and essential to the well-being of the department. The total number of graduate students had been about 30 or 40 until about 1976 when the number was essentially zero. This happened because of an administrative decision to place a temporary moratorium on the doctoral program during which time spurious charges of program irregularities were investigated and resolved. Subsequently, the number of graduate students rose to about 75 in the 1980's, and has settled at around 50 now. The number of undergraduate majors has fluctuated in a similar manner, and stands at about 90 now. Nearly all graduate students hold teaching fellowships while they enroll for a full-time program of study. The average length of time students spend on completing the master's degree is about two years and then about five more years to complete the Ph.D. degree. Practically all of these students tell us later that their time in school was the "best time in my life!" Students from all over the US and from many foreign countries continue to form a challenging and stimulating student body. And many of these return for visits with faculty and staff from time to time.

In about 1994 the department encountered an unusual opportunity. Andrew Beal, who at the time was a very young Dallas banker and entrepreneur, became interested in our undergraduate and graduate programs in mathematics and spent several hours consulting with Professors Mauldin and Neuberger about some ideas he had for solving Fermat?s Last Theorem. Mr. Beal had no formal education in mathematics but had learned a great deal on his own. His ideas led to a new problem called the `Beal Conjecture'. He also funded scholarships for students in the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science, for graduate students in mathematics, and also offered the university two million dollars toward the construction of a Mathematics Building (which he wanted to be called Fermat Hall). However, the university administration was not able to accept this offer since they were not willing to provide the additional $7M needed for construction. Hence, the department continues to be housed in the General Academic Building, which we moved to in 1980. Prior to that time, the department was in the Physics Math Building and the old Historical Building (now called Curry Hall).

The department operates under its own charter, first adopted in 1966 and revised in 1999 to reflect better the whole of the faculty. However, the department has always operated under faculty authority. Prior to the adoption of the first charter, the professors advised the chair and made decisions about hiring and directions the department should take. Chairs in the department have played an important role, but always a support role so that students and faculty could get their best work done in learning, teaching, and research. We do not have records on hand to determine when the first chair was named or who. We do know that Dr. Eugene Harold Hansen served as chair from 1935-1957, that Dr. James Vincent Cooke was interim chair for 1957-58, and that Dr. Herbert Charles Parrish was chair 1958-1965. Other chairs have been:

• Dr. John Theodore Mohat (1965-1970)
• Dr. Frank Field Connor (1970-1975)
• Dr. John T. Mohat, interim (1975-1976)
• Dr. John Ed Allen (1976-1999)
• Dr. Neal Edwin Brand (1999-present)

It is of some interest to note that (as of this date) all of these persons, except for Drs. Hansen and Mohat who are deceased, still live in Denton! And indeed since 1965 we can recall only two math faculty, who retired while teaching here, that have died; they are Mohat, and Dr. Burns Brewer who had a heart attack and died in the barber's chair in the late sixties. Long lives the mathematics professor in Denton! [Note: Dr. Herb Parrish died this summer, after this piece was prepared. Herb served as chair when I was hired and was always a source of inspiration for all of us who knew him and had the opportunity to work with him.]

Special recognition must also be given to those who have served as departmental secretaries both past and present. Those we recall with some fondness have been Eloise Buck, Betty Gunter, Kay Nelson, Lynn Holick, Pat Peters, and Christy Strickland. Andrea Monda Slater served the department well and for many years as secretary leaving us in the year 2000 to work only half-time in another department. Ginny Lassiter currently serves very ably and admirably as administrative assistant in the department and has for many years. Beth Leggieri joined the secretarial staff several years ago and does excellent work with the faculty and students. And finally Belinda Firth joined us as secretary just a few months ago. The secretaries in the department have always been so much more than just secretaries. They share joy and trauma with both students and faculty, being very active in the whole life of the department. On many occasions they have worked untold extra hours to make conferences run smoothly, registrations for classes more tolerable, and by giving special notice to new degree holders with cakes and flowers, celebrating with faculty and students special birthdays and anniversaries. Our graduates often will not recall who their teachers were, but they always remember how helpful and considerate and who the secretaries have been!

So much more could be said and tales told. But these reminiscences occupy us individually with many hours of reflection and pleasure, and occasionally collectively as we speak of them. Let it be said, and sufficiently so, that the collection of people, ideas, hopes and dreams which comprise what is affectionately called the Mathematics Department at the University of North Texas in Denton has a spirit of its own, unique and indomitable! Watch out World! Here we have been, here we are, and here we come!

Charter

CHARTER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS
(as revised in Spring 1999)

PREAMBLE
In order to assure that each faculty member can participate in the administration of the affairs of the department and in order to assure an atmosphere that is receptive to individual opinion and that encourages the free exchange of views, the members of the Faculty of the Department of Mathematics adopt this charter for the operation of the department. The members of this Faculty consider themselves a community of scholars from which the departmental officers and committees receive authority to act in the name of the department and to which departmental officers and committees are responsible. Both the Department and the Chair recognize their responsibility and relationship to the Administration and the Board of Regents of the University of North Texas.

ARTICLE I - ORGANIZATION AND MEETINGS
Section 1: The Departmental Faculty - The Departmental Faculty shall consist of all full-time members of the faculty of the University of North Texas who hold academic appointments in the Department of Mathematics. Voting privileges on Departmental matters are extended to all members of the Departmental Faculty who are tenured or are in tenure-track.

Section 2: Meetings - Regular meetings of the Departmental Faculty shall be called by the Chair once each semester. Additional meetings may be called by the Chair, by the Executive Committee, or on the request of at least one-third of the Departmental Faculty. Meetings of the Departmental Faculty will be announced to all voting members of the Departmental Faculty at least one week in advance. Departmental meetings will function by simple majority vote of those present and voting except in case of amendments to this Charter (see Article VI). Any issue affecting the Department, excluding matters of tenure, promotion, and salary of individual faculty members, may be brought before the Departmental Faculty. Minutes of all meetings of the Departmental Faculty will be kept and will be made available to all members of the Department and to the appropriate
administrative officials.

ARTICLE II - CHAIR
The Chair of the Department shall be appointed by the Board of Regents upon recommendation by the President of the University from recommendations made by the Vice-President for Academic Affairs and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from nominee(s) submitted by the Departmental Faculty (see Article III, Section 4). The Chair is the chief executive officer of the department. In this administrative capacity, it is the chair's task to carry out, with the advice and counsel of the Departmental faculty, the administrative and educational policies of the department and the university. The chair's duties include such responsibilities as presenting budgets, appointments, promotions, severances, courses, and schedules for approval to the administration. The chair's authority is exercised with the assistance of departmental committees established according to this Charter. In making recommendations to the administration, the Chair, if requested by the faculty members involved, shall report the final numerical results of departmental or relevant committee voting on contested issues. Members eligible to vote on the matter at hand may request to see the Chair's recommendations. Dissenting opinions shall be filed at the request of the dissenting faculty member(s).

ARTICLE III - EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Section 1: Structure - The Executive Committee (EC) will consist of the Chair of the Department and six elected members to be chosen as follows: Category A: two from among the tenured faculty at the rank of professor. Category B: four from among the tenured faculty at the rank of either associate professor or professor.

The Chair of the Department will be the Chair of the Executive Committee.

Section 2: Term of Office - The term of office on the EC will be two years, with the exception that the members elected in category B the first year will draw lots, one for a one-year term, and the other two for a two-year term. Committee members will assume office immediately upon election. No faculty member can be elected to serve more than two consecutive years on the EC after Fall 1999.

Section 3: Election - Election of the EC will be held in the fall semester of each year at a meeting of the Departmental Faculty scheduled by the Chair of the Department. After the first election, only one member in category A and two members in Category B will be elected each year, except in the case of a vacancy. Vacancies on the EC will be filled by special election. Election will be accomplished by a procedure acceptable to a majority of the Departmental Faculty.

Section 4: Duties of the Executive Committee - The EC will be responsible for formulating the academic and administrative policies of the Department; for Departmental decisions concerning all personnel matters including faculty appointments, terminations, tenure and promotion decisions; academic programs; budgets; long-range planning; and for appointing standing and special committees as it deems necessary. It is the responsibility of the professors on the EC to make decisions on promotion to professor. Whenever a vacancy in the chair of the Department occurs or is anticipated, the EC will act as a combination search and nominating committee for a new chair. The nominee(s) will be submitted to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and the Vice-President for Academic Affairs (see Article II). In cases when the chair is nominated from within the Department, the acceptability (as opposed to preference) of the nominee or nominees to the members of the Department shall be determined by secret and confidential balloting of the Department, the sealed ballots to be mailed to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

ARTICLE IV - GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES
The EC will provide for prompt and fair hearing of grievances.

ARTICLE V - ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION
Adoption of this Charter shall require two-thirds vote of the Departmental Faculty. This Charter shall become effective at the beginning of the 1999 Fall semester.

ARTICLE VI - AMENDMENTS
This Charter may be amended by a vote of two-thirds of the Departmental Faculty.

The following six Guiding Principles for evaluation of faculty and assessment of the departmental effort are adapted from the "Recognition and Rewards in the Mathematical Sciences" 1994 report of the Joint Policy Board for Mathematics of the National Research
Council:

1. Research in the mathematical sciences and its applications is fundamental to the existence and utility of the discipline and should continue to be among the primary factors of importance in the evaluation of faculty and the department.
2. The department recognizes that contributions to teaching and related activities are equally important with research/scholarship as a primary factor of importance in the evaluation of faculty and the department. Service to the profession and the discipline is essential and also recognized as a factor in the evaluation of faculty and the department.
3. The department encourages faculty to allocate their efforts in ways that are as consistent as possible with their current interests and, at the same time, fit the needs of the department. The goal is to create a department that meets all its obligations and aspirations with excellence, while at the same time engaging faculty in activities that they find personally rewarding. These activities will be recognized as valuable, and will be appropriately rewarded when done well.
4. Departmental faculty are expected to engage in some form of mathematical scholarship throughout their careers.
5. The department will use the best available methods, imperfect though they may be, for evaluating teaching, research, scholarship, and service while also seeking to develop better methods of evaluation. The full range of professional contributions will be considered in evaluating faculty and assessing the department.

Evaluation of faculty and assessment of the department must be directly related to the mission and goals of the department and university. An essential aspect of any well-functioning evaluation and assessment structure is that all concerned--faculty and administration--know and understand what is valued and rewarded.