Ellen Maycock Named Director of AMS Meetings & Professional Services

August 3, 2005

Providence, RI---Ellen Maycock, Johnson Family University Professor and professor of mathematics at DePauw University, has been appointed associate executive director of the AMS, starting in September 2005. She succeeds James W. Maxwell, who has entered partial retirement and continues to work on selected projects part-time for the Society.

In her new position, Maycock oversees the meetings, public awareness, and membership and programs departments of the AMS. Among other activities, these departments conduct surveys, manage career and employment services, run research conferences, publish Math in the Media and the Feature Column on the web, provide information for department leaders and students, and administer grants and fellowships.

"It is very exciting to think about being involved at the national level," she remarked. "The profession is changing rapidly, and there are new pressures on all of us. I have always been interested in not only the subject of mathematics, but also the people in mathematics---mathematicians. I feel I might have a chance of making a difference for them."

Maycock received her bachelor's degree in mathematics and economics in 1972 from Wellesley College. She earned her PhD in mathematics 1986 at Purdue University, with a dissertation in operator algebras written under the direction of Jerome Kaminker. Maycock is perhaps best known for her development of innovative approaches to teaching abstract algebra. She created a course that used a software package called Exploring Small Groups to help students grasp algebraic concepts.

Maycock wrote "Laboratory Experiences in Group Theory", which was published in 1996 by the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) in its series Classroom Resource Materials. She is also co-editor, with Allen Hibbard, of "Innovations in Teaching Abstract Algebra", a collection of essays published in the MAA Notes series in 2002. Maycock has lectured widely on the use of technology in teaching undergraduate mathematics and has given several workshops and minicourses on the subject. "Technology gives students an easy way to generate a lot of examples, and then they can start to recognize patterns," she explained.

"We're all sad to see Jim Maxwell step down, but eagerly awaiting Ellen's arrival," said AMS executive director John H. Ewing. "She brings valuable experience to the Society and fresh ideas. And she will forcefully remind us that the AMS represents all mathematicians, from the largest universities to the smallest colleges. This is a great opportunity for us."

For more information, contact:

Mike Breen or Annette Emerson, AMS Public Awareness Officers
Email: paoffice@ams.org
Telephone: 401-455-4000

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Founded in 1888 to further mathematical research and scholarship, the 30,000-member American Mathematical Society fulfills its mission through programs and services that promote mathematical research and its uses, strengthen mathematical education, and foster awareness and appreciation of mathematics and its connections to other disciplines and to everyday life.