I started my coursework for my MS - Mathematics (emphasis in statistics) at UMKC in January of 2003 and finished in May of 2005. I went back to work in IT Project Management that June and prepared for the comprehensive exams in the fall. In December 2005, I passed my comprehensive exams and earned my degree. I looked for positions in statistics and started with H&R Block in 2007 as a statistician.
While UMKC fully prepared me for a career in industry working as a statistician, my wife and I had a desire to move to a teaching lifestyle. In August 2008 I was hired at the Southwest Early College Campus (SWECC) as the dual credit mathematics teacher. This first year of teaching was a wonderful experience. The SWECC instructors worked closely with our UMKC partner instructors. I also had excellent mentor teachers at the school, and since I started teaching through the alternate teaching certification program, whose experience and guidance greatly helped me to be successful in my first year in the classroom. Since 2008 was the first year of re-opening SWECC, we only had a 6th and 9th grade class of which six 9th graders were in my college algebra class. One of them scored a 100% on the UMKC final! All of the College Algebra 9th graders passed the course with a grade of B or higher. We took the kids to the KCATM math contest that year, although we didn't get to practice much before the contest, and came away with a 3rd place medal in the team algebra event. At the end of the year, our 9th grade kids placed 2nd in the Kansas City Missouri school district on their Algebra I End of Course exams (I taught 4 of the 6 Algebra I classes). I am truly grateful for this experience and especially all of the friendships and colleagues I gained while at SWECC.
In August 2009, I move to Winnetonka HS in the North Kansas City School District hired as the dual credit math instructor. As of this writing (04/14/12), I have taught college algebra, calculus I, calculus II and elementary statistics through the UMKC HSCP and sponsored the math club. As a dual credit instructor through UMKC, I am able to give my students the opportunity to earn university credit at a nationally accredited university where my students' credits will transfer across state lines to other national universities. This is a real benefit to them and I owe this to the fact that I've earned a MS-Mathematics degree and am a fully qualified UMKC adjunct instructor.
In the summer of 2010, I finished up my MA - Curriculum and Instruction at UMKC, required by my alternative certification teaching program, and earned my probationary teaching certificate in MO. Earning this degree was another excellent experience as I worked with the professors at the School of Education. They provided me with the needed support to be successful in the classroom. Both my SWECC experiences and my professors at UMKC had a profound impact in developing my teaching philosophy. Other highlights over the past few years include: AP Calculus AB institute class in 2010; AP Statistics institute class in 2011; attending the MAA Mathfest Summer 2011; becoming a WebWork consultant through an NSF grant and the MAA in 2011; attending (and presenting in 2011) the Kansas City Regional Mathematics Technology EXPO every fall which is a highlight for me and my wife each year as we get to reconnect with so many colleagues and friends; attending (and presenting in 2012) at the Kansas City Area Teachers of Mathematics every February which is another highlight for me and my wife each year; work on statistical analyses for graduate students - putting that statistics knowledge to work.
While I continue to grow and develop as a teacher, the preparation in course work from my MS and MA degrees have provided me with a solid foundation. For instance, Dr. Delaware taught my Advanced Analysis course, which I can't say I had the greatest appreciation for at the time, and now as I teach Calculus I and II, I find myself getting my analysis books out to review the theoretical aspects of calculus to prepare lessons. I have such a long list of thank-yous to all of the professors at UMKC. Each one of them has contributed to my learning mathematics and education in a profound way. I do not want to leave any professors off the list who taught me classes, but I must mention the following professors:
Dr. Delaware who I have gotten to work with as a student, a colleague and as a friend. He has always been supportive and brings the same excitement to the learning and teaching of mathematics as a first year teacher. I still plan to take his history of mathematics class.
Dr. Zeng who exposed me to some of the most difficult mathematics I ever learned in his mathematical finance class - I still need to take his probability theory courses
Dr. Chen who was my graduate advisor and is an exacting task master teaching statistics theory and application. Thank you for making me put in the effort so that I mastered the material at a deep level.
Dr. Rhee whose numerical analysis classes exposed me to the beauty of the mathematical worlds of linear algebra and matrix theory.
Dr. Hall - take his Advanced Algebra course! Not only do you learn the mathematics, you have to experience his dialogue teaching isomorphism. This needs to be filmed and posted on YouTube.
Rebecca Roberts for supporting me as a GTA and continues to support me as a UMKC dual credit HSCP instructor
Dr. Barger (SOE), my graduate advisor in the School of Education (SOE), for her support in developing my teaching style and philosophy
Dr. Bell (SOE) for her support and especially her patience in developing my teaching style and philosophy. She challenged my thinking many times which has made me a better teacher.
Dr. Jacobs (SOE) who irritated me many times as he challenged our teaching beliefs at SWECC. I applaud him for his tenacity and patience in making me think, re-think and change my positions as a teacher. I am delighted to call him a colleague and a friend.
Again, I am very grateful to all of my professors at UMKC. I'll provide a brief update in a couple of years.
Joe Morse