A Magnificent May for the MCSS Department!
Even though May isn't quite over, the Department of Math, Computer Science, and Statistics has had an incredible month, and we'd like to share some of our accomplishments and festivities:
The May 12 Senior Picnic at Bend in the River was a great success, with over 70 attendees as instructors, staff, and students came together to honor our seniors!
Professor Dan M. Look delivered the final lecture on Wednesday, May 14, after being chosen by the senior class as the 2025 ODY Outstanding Faculty award recipient. Previously in the week, on May 5, it was also announced that Dr. Look was elected by faculty for the Charles A. Dana Professorship.
The MCSS Department produced more than half (30) of the honors* and more than a third (20/58) Summa Cum Laude (GPA of 3.85 to 4.0) graduates, honored at Commencement on Sunday, May 17.
The Trustee Academic Achievement Award, which honors graduates with the best cumulative grade-point average, was given to Taylor Lum '25 and Ally McCormick '25. Taylor will continue playing Division I women's ice hockey while pursuing a master's degree at Penn State. Ally plans to pursue a master's degree in applied mathematics at Tufts.
Lily Kendall ’25 was the recipient of the Jeffery H. Boyd Class of '78 Prize. This award was created by the Board of Trustees in 2018 to honor a graduating senior's outstanding leadership and overall contributions.
A few highlights from Lily’s nomination letter:
Lily served as a key mentor and leader at the Peterson Quantitative Resource Center, offering vital support to students in computer science and statistics. Additionally, Lily independently established the Women in Math & CS Club hosting various events aimed at creating a more inclusive environment for women in these traditionally male-dominated fields and played a pivotal role in organizing the "Math & Everything" outreach event last September, which catered to women from regional high schools.
Many other departmental scholars were also recognized during the commencement ceremony, including but not limited to:
Brandon Dickson, McKenna Alardi, Cooper Anderson, Kobe Villeneuve, Alex Tidd, & John Hill-Edgar
Click to read more: Passion, Grit, and Growth: Meet the Class of 2025 | St. Lawrence University
Finally, Dr. Kevin Angstadt and Dr. Ed Harcourt were given final approval to offer their cybersecurity major here at SLU earlier this week on Wednesday, May 21, when it was formally registered with the New York State Education Department.
*Majors require a GPA of 3.5 in the department / 3.0 overall to qualify for honors
