Presbyterian College math professor looks to students for inspiration and hope for the future
Dr. Doug Daniel has loved mathematics for as long as he can remember.
As a child, Daniel had completed nearly every level of math his elementary school offered by the time he had reached 6th grade, and in high school, he had completed every math course available to him by the end of his junior year.
“I went to college with the idea of being a math major,” he said. “I did end up declaring a math major, and I was very happy that I did.”
A family tradition
While in college away from home, Daniel spent much time with his grandparents. His grandfather, a retired chemistry professor, would often talk to him about his experiences at the small liberal arts college where he taught.
As a graduate student, Daniel held a teaching assistantship, an experience which helped him decide to take on a full-time teaching position in between finishing his master’s and pursuing his Ph.D.
“I drew on the discussions I’d had with my grandfather, and the experience that I was having as a full-time teacher, and I really, really liked it,” he said.
Daniel’s coworkers were highly supportive of him, encouraging him to take the leap and pursue a career as an educator, though he credits Dr. Jim Porter as his main source of support.
“We had a lot of good conversations about how to make that happen, and I’m very grateful to him for that,” he said. “In many ways, it’s because of him that I’m here today.”
Since both of Daniel’s parents and his brother attended small liberal arts colleges, PC’s environment was one with which he was very familiar and with which he felt comfortable.
I’ve had the joy of having some really curious, interesting people to work with. We’ve had some majors who were maybe better at math than I am, in some ways, so it’s been really good getting to know them.”
Dr. Doug Daniel, Professor of Mathematics
He earned a teaching postdoc at Wake Forest University, and it was there that he earned the experience to make him a compelling candidate for a school like Presbyterian College.
Daniel has been teaching at PC since the fall of 2003, and the highlight of his experience has been the chance to interact and work with students over the years.
“I’ve had the joy of having some really curious, interesting people to work with,” he said. “We’ve had some majors who were maybe better at math than I am, in some ways, so it’s been really good getting to know them.”
Hopes for the future
When he thinks about the years yet to come, Daniel sees a future of overcoming challenges, starting with the small size of the mathematics department, both in faculty and students.
“I like to think that I’m hopeful,” he said. “We’ve got some good students in the pipeline, and I’m hopeful that we can get some more.”
Another area of growth that Daniel hopes to see within the department is student-led research. Having recently attended a large regional conference for math educators, Daniel was left feeling inspired by the students and their research.
“It was really heartening to me to see all of the projects and all of the enthusiastic young students,” he said. “I hope we can get a core group of those kinds of students in the future.”
