Pi Mu Epsilon Events

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Current Schedule of Events

 

Events Overview

 

 

Event Details

  • Fall-&-Spring Semester Membership Drives
    • Invitation letter and application forms will be sent to students and posted on PME/GMC's main homepage. The letter and forms explain how to apply to PME and/or GMC.
    • This is the time for you to help promote PME/GMC. The best advertising for our club is word of mouth, so we encourage you to encourage your friends to consider joining.
    • Returning Members: please renew your membership by filling out the application form (once an Academic Year suffices). This will ensure that you remain on our email list.
  • Fall-&-Spring Initiation Ceremonies
    • Returning PME/GMC members will welcome the new PME/GMC members in our traditional candlelit Initiation Ceremony. New PME inductees take the honorary society pledge and officially sign their names into our Chapter's book.
    • We will discuss this year's events, for which members will sign up as Team Captains and/or Team Members. Be thinking of in which events you would like to partake.
    • Spouses, children, significant others, and parents are all welcome. Typically there is a wide variation in dress attire.
  • Dessert and Games Night
    • We are looking forward to another exciting year for our club! Now is the time for you to help promote and develop PME/GMC. The best advertising for our club is word of mouth, so we encourage you to bring your friends who are considering joining.
    • We will introduce ourselves and then welcome the new officers for the year. The elected positions are: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
    • We will discuss possible events for this year so be thinking of what you would like our club to do. For ideas you can check out our prior years (see Homepage from Prior Years and Events from Prior Years). Those events that have the interest and support of PME/GMC members will prevail. Those events that fall short of interest ... will not occur. Let your voice be heard!
    • Then ... dessert and games. Need we say more?
    • You are welcome to bring contributions: your favorite dessert, snack, games, etc.
  • Graduate School Information Evening
    • Come ask your questions about applying to graduate school in mathematics and mathematics education. For example, what classes should I be taking now, to which schools should I apply, what does an application entail, when should I apply...? If you are interested in studying math or math ed after your bachelor's degree, this is an excellent opportunity.
    • We have USC representatives from: mathematics and math education.
    • There will be a panel discussion, with the opportunity to ask your specific questions individually afterwards.
    • The Knowles Science Teaching Foundation offers national fellowships for future math or science teachers. USC has a great Knowles Scholar record. If you are interested, contact USC's Office of Fellowships and Scholar Programs in Legare 220 for more information. Fellowship Coordinators will be happy to help.
  • Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Information Evening
    • Are you interested in doing math research through the National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for Undergraduates program? Are you interested in an internship? How about going to MathFest?
    • USC students have have participated in such events will discuss what they did.
    • USC representatives will discuss how to go about finding and choosing an REU or internship.
  • Getting to Know Your 500-level MATH Courses
  • Christmas Stocking Stuffing
    • The Math Department participates in the Salvation Army Stocking Stuffers program that provides (filled) Christmas Stocking for children in need. The Math Dept collects toys to fill the stockings.
    • You can contribute and make a child smile this holiday season by helping stuff the stockings with donated toys. We gather somewhere in LeConte, put all the toys out on the large table, and stuff the stockings.
  • Sudoku Championship
    • Someone (often USC Prof. Josh Cooper) starts off by discussing connections between Sudoku and Math.
    • After this, test your skills to see how good you really are at our Sudoku Championship.
    • Prizes for the overall winners. Door prizes and snacks throughout.
  • USC Math Jeopardy
  • Annual USC Integration Bee
    • The USC Integration Bee was started by Carrie Finch (a former graduate student at USC and current tenure-track assistant professor at Washington and Lee Univ.) on April 8, 2003. Since then, PME/GMC hosts the USC Integration Bee annually. It is similar to a spelling bee, but one integrates insteads of spells. In teams of ≈ 4, students work through each integral before the music ends. Snacks, drinks, door prizes, and winner's prizes are all provided.
    • Open to all USC undergraduate students.
    • We thank the USC Math Department, the South Carolina Honors College, and National PME for their generous support of this event over the years.
  • Tutoring at local high school
    • Several PME/GMC members, back in 2007, requested that we start a tutoring program in local schools. We have arranged for interested PME/GMC members to tutor at Dreher High School's Tutoring Center. Mrs. Thunell, the center's director, e-mail:
      Dr. Girardi:
      I understand that you may have students who would like to tutor in math. Having them at Dreher would be a blessing for us!
      I operate the tutoring center here at Dreher. I am here throughout each school day (8-3) and after school until 4:00 PM. I have students come into my room throughout the day for help with classwork, homework, and studying for tests. As you might imagine, math is the subject that puzzles them the most. I do much of the tutoring myself, although I do have some helpers from Dreher's National Honor Society. My biggest need is for tutors from 3-4 PM on Monday through Thursday. However, if another time was a better fit for your students, we could probably work that out, as well. I would be present in the room, so no volunteer would feel left alone. Our kids are very grateful for the help, so I think your students would find tutoring to be very gratifying and even addicting!
      We need help mostly in Algebra I, II, geometry, and pre-cal. You are welcome to come and visit me here at Dreher at any time. I look forward to meeting some of your students.
      Thanks, Maureen Thunell
    • If you are interested in tutoring, please contact Mrs. Thunell (mthunell@richlandone.org).
    • Here (but change the options from by car to walking) are directions for the 2 mile/40 minute walk from LeConte (1523 Greene Street) to Dreher HS (3319 Millwood Avenue), which is the closest high school to LeConte. It's a safe walk in the afternoon, just do not take a detour into the neighborhood boarded by Harden/Greene/Millwood/Gervais Streets.
  • PME/GMC Bulletin Boards
    • PME/GMC has 3 glassed in bulletin boards on the 1st floor of LeConte (2 near the Greene St. entrance and 1 near the Math Tutor Lab) as well as several bulletin boards in the student lounge. We have some extra empty bulletin boards just sitting around waiting for someone to design something for them.
    • The purpose of these boards is to showcase our club's events and accomplishments as well as to announce our events.
    • One bulletin board is our Photo Gallery. If you have not already donated your personal photo of choice, please drop one off (with your name and the current semester on the back of it) to the PME mailbox outside LC 411 or give it to a Faculty Advisor. We prefer personalized fun photos over mug shots.
    • It takes (approximately) 2 to 3 PME/GMC members to maintain the boards. We have a nice supply of material for bulletin board making.
  • Pi Mu Epsilon/Gamecock Math Club T-shirt design
    • We had a PME T-shirt in 2014, designed by Marissa Brienza, our PME president at the time. She ordered shirts through The Graphic Cow Company. We would love to have a t-shirt every year, so if you are willing to help, please email Ronda Sanders.
  • The Hedberg Student Lounge (LC 108)
    • Thanks to the generousity of former USC mathematics professors Ernest and Marguerite Hedberg, there is a student lounge in the math department. The Hedbergs were also PME members! Many of our PME/GMC events occur there.
    • We ask that each PME/GMC member helps in keeping the student lounge in order and tidy. Thank you!
  • USC Clean Carolina Project
    • PME/GMC oversees Gibbes Green (the green circular area near LeConte, with the black benches) through the Clean Carolina Project.
    • A few times a year we gather as a group to year to pick up rubbish there. Usually we try to coordinate with the USC Clean Carolina Campus-Wide days. Come on out! Of course, if you are just walking by and see some rubbish, feel free to see that it makes it to a proper place.
  • Annual SC State High School Math Contest
    • The USC math dept hosts the annual South Carolina High School Math Contest. Many PME/GMC members participated in this contest while in high school.
    • PME/GMC members kindly volunteer to help. This involves assisting with: set-up and registration as well as the logistics of the written exam, ciphering contest, and math tournament. We also serve as runners, helping transport material between-&-within LeConte and the campus building in which the contest is held.
    • There is a morning shift (8am-noon) and an afternoon shift (noon-4pm). In between shifts there is free pizza for volunteers.
    • As the date approaches, we will send out an email with more info and request volunteers. You can sign up to help then.
  • Undergraduate Student Seminar
    • If you would like to present an Undergraduate Student Seminar, please contact one of the Faculty Advisors.
    • Students are welcome to speak. Here are some examples of students who would be good candidates to give brief talks to their peers: students who attended a summer REU (research experience for undergraduates) or have done research, students who have done or are currently doing an undergraduate thesis in math (whether for honors or not), students who have done or are currently doing an internship or job in a math-related field, or students who have a fun math topic they would like to share.
    • Of course, graduate students and faculty members are also welcomed to speak.
  • Regularly Scheduled Problem Sessions
  • MAA Conference
    • The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) holds an annual Southeastern Section meeting each Spring. They offer undergraduate student activities, such as: Math Jeopardy, Undergraduate Student Talk/Poster Session, and Graduate-School/Career Fair.
    • In the past, PME students have presented their research (e.g., from an REU) at the Talk/Poster Session.
    • To quote a former USC PME participant: ''This is a lot of fun, and would make for a great first conference if you've never been."
    • Special thanks to Prof. Mossinghoff, Davidson College, for all your help with USC's participation in Math Jeopardy.
    • If you are interested in partaking, let a PME/GMC Faculty Advisor (asap, please) know.
    • USC Jeopardy Team Members. (And Team Sponsor)
      • 2019: Shannon Higgins, Maggie O'Connell, Josh Nelson, William McMakin (Ronda Sanders)
      • 2018: Noemi Glaeser, Julia Sultz, Melissa Lein, Emily Cunningham (Ronda Sanders)
      • 2016: Noemi Glaeser, Annalise Bowen, Dylan Shields, Eric Miller (Ronda Sanders) They took third place out of 28 teams.
      • 2015: Jeffrey Davis, David Galban, Neall Caughman, Dylan Shields (Ronda Sanders) They took second place out of 27 teams.
      • 2014: Charles Arnold, Major Brightwell, Jeffrey Davis, Reid Harris (Ronda Sanders) They took first place out of 26 teams.
      • 2013: Charles Arnold, Major Brightwell, George Helman, Nicholas Smith (Marvin Jones)
      • 2012: Connor Bain, Reginald Bain, Reid Harris, Richard Voepel. (Virginia Johnson) They took fourth place.
      • 2011: Cole Franks, Daniel Grier, Hudson Harper, Reid Harris. (Prof. Mossinghoff)
      • 2010: Hudson Harper, Jim Manning, Joey Montoya, Luke Whiteside. (Prof. Mossinghoff) They took first place out of 31 teams.
  • Movie Night
    • We gather to watch and discuss a math-related movie. In the past we have watched both Hollywood-type movies and documentaries. Popcorn goes over well.