My Why Story

Both of my parents were teachers. My dad taught English and my mom taught art. People always marvel that such a creative pair of people managed to produce a mathematician. They would be less surprised if they knew that mathematics is an art: the art of explanation. All the best mathematicians I know are intensely creative, artsy people. One of my favorite things about teaching is that I get to show kids—especially creative ones—that they really are math people, despite what they’ve been saying for years.