Biography
Michael Wang explores the intersection
between technology, mathematics, and culture in an attempt to reach
contemporary students. He graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a B.S.
in Mathematics in 2002, then followed it with an M.S. degree from Cal Poly
Pomona in 2005 with a concentration in Applied Mathematics and a thesis on the
topic of Nonhomogeneous Birth-Death Processes.
He taught introductory level and
sophomore engineering mathematics at Cal Poly Pomona from 2004-2016, receiving
the All-Star Favorite Faculty Member honor his rookie year. During this time,
he also taught math and statistics courses part-time for Citrus College,
Riverside City College, University of California Riverside, and Chapman
University. In August 2016, Michael relocated to Texas and began work as a
full-time Lecturer at Texas A&M University Kingsville. He taught
introductory level mathematics and served in Recruitment, Undergraduate and
Calculus committees as well as being the Math Department Library Liaison. He
was commended for his Annual Faculty Evaluation binder and given a “Most
Improved Teaching” award in 2018. Later that year, Mr. Wang joined the Coastal
Bend College Mathematics Division.
Mike currently works from the
Alice and Kingsville campuses where he teaches face-to-face, distance learning,
and internet courses. He served as a Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Rho Lambda
Chapter Adviser from 2018-2020 and occasionally helps the Interview Committee
hire new staff and faculty members. He is currently the Principal Instructor of
Student Learning Outcome (SLO) Assessments for College Algebra (MATH-1314) and
Contemporary Mathematics (MATH-1332), and a Texas Pathways committee member.
Mixing traditional lecture with
software technology, Michael seeks to convey mathematics to a diverse audience
through a language and culture that addresses their needs and concerns. In
pursuit of that ideal, he taught College Algebra, Trigonometry, Analytic
Geometry, Single and Multivariable Calculus, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra,
Advanced Engineering Mathematics, Contemporary Mathematics, Statistics,
Business and Life-Science Calculus, and several hybrid-online math courses, by
integrating software such as Blackboard, Maple, and MyMathLab with his popular
lecture format in order to maximize student-centered learning.
Having begun taking college math
courses as a high school sophomore in the Young Scholars Program, Michael
became aware of the struggles of college students outside the mainstream. He
continues to carry out the mission of the institution and ensure quality of its
academic programs. Currently, he is working on his doctoral degree in
Educational Leadership at Texas A&M University Kingsville. In between
classes, Mike enjoys biking, making electronic music, playing racquetball, and
chess.