I had the opportunity to serve as the graduate student coordinator of the Preparing Future Faculty Program (PFF) for the 1999-2000 academic year. Through this role, I probably received more P for FF than anyone. Not only was I able to participate in nearly all of the activities, but I also helped in the organization and scheduling of many of them. Making arrangements for such events was wonderful preparation for faculty life in itself, but that is another story. I'll confine my comments to the value of actual participation in the activities.
I believe that participation in the program had two positive effects. First, we were prepared to make a positive contribution as mathematics faculty. This is not to say that we would not make a positive contribution without PFF, but just that PFF was beneficial. The professional seminars addressed nearly all of the current issues facing mathematics faculty. Obviously, some were better than others, but I learned something from each seminar. Additionally, the two technology workshops were a big success. These three-hour Saturday morning presentations gave us practical ideas about how to incorporate mathematics software into our teaching.
The visits to partner institutions were of extremely high value. I made a presentation about Archimedes at one of the partner institutions. Of course, the atmosphere was much different than the one we face when teaching a class as a teaching assistant at SUNY-Binghamton. Even more, when visiting a partner institution, we were able to have frank discussions with the faculty there about our profession. It was interesting to hear about their approaches to teaching and the responsibilities that they face in their institutions.
The second positive effect of PFF is more pragmatic. In order to become valued members of our professional community, it is important that we have the opportunity to meet new people and share our ideas. Participation in the PFF certainly enabled us to do this. The visits to the partner institutions were important in this respect, but the participation in professional meetings was probably even more significant. Personally, I made presentations at both the joint meeting in Washington D.C. and a regional Group Theory meeting at Ohio State, and as a result, I met several mathematicians whose interests are similar to mine.
I would encourage any graduate student returning to SUNY-Binghamton for the 2000-2001 academic year to become involved in PFF. It is an opportunity to become an active member of the professional community while you are still a graduate student. I can honestly say that the time and effort that I spent on PFF was definitely a worthwhile investment.
Joseph Evan, Ph.D.
Department of Mathematics
King's College
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711
(570) 208-5900
jmevan@kings.edu