Community Connections Events for Faculty

Students, faculty, and staff are invited to connect with President Nembhard this semester to share ideas, discuss projects and initiatives, talk about the College’s strategic plan, raise issues affecting the community, or simply connect.

To request a meeting, please choose a preferred slot on this link. Submitting a request does not guarantee an appointment. A member of the President’s Office will follow up with next steps.

Please note:

• Groups should be limited to no more than five people.
• Requests are reviewed as they are received and are subject to change.

The IA lab for Emerging Health Technology and Department of Biology present an Industry Career Talk by

Jonathan Striepen
Senior Scientist, Cell Engineering and Analytical Sciences, Johnson and Johnson

Striepen will discuss how studying esoteric cell biology can be translated to cell engineering for industrial drug production.

This Community Connections event provides a casual way for students, faculty and staff to come together and enjoy refreshments, meet their fellow community members, and get to know each other better. Hosted by the Cabinet.

Location: Galileo Foyer and Hixon Courtyard.

All are welcome to stop by as schedules allow.

Details

Following the Boba and Coffee Break event, the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Committee will host a town hall meeting for students, faculty, and staff.

All are welcome to attend as schedules allow.

Details

The Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Committee will host a town hall meeting for students, faculty, and staff to share results from the recent Higher Education Data Sharing (HEDS) Sense of Community Survey.

All are welcome to attend as schedules allow.

Faculty and community members host informal two-hour mahjong workshops / office hours in the Sprague Art Gallery as part of the exhibition “Mahjong and Its Cultural Forms” organized by HMC professor Jia Yi Gu and Angie Lin of Mahjong Mistresses. These sessions will offer students, faculty, staff and community members a chance to drop in, learn the basics of mahjong, practice playing and spend time together around the table. Partnership with 5C Board Club TBC.

Welcome back, student employees!

Kick off the new academic year with HR! Join us to meet the HR team, learn where to find us and connect with the people who are here to support you throughout your student employment experience. Stop by for food, swag and fun crafts as we welcome you back and show our appreciation for all that you do.

“Dirichlet’s Theorem and the Rise of Analytic Number Theory”

In 1837, Peter Dirichlet proved the following theorem: If a and d are relatively prime integers, then the arithmetic progression a, a+d, a+2d, . . . contains infinitely many prime numbers. His proof ushered in a revolution in number theory because it relied in a critical way on complex analysis. The use of analytic methods to solve problems in number theory was a tremendous innovation at the time. We will consider some of the details of Dirichlet’s proof, focusing on understanding why there is a deep connection between these seemingly unrelated branches of mathematics. Throughout, we will be more concerned with the ideas underlying the proof than we will with presenting an excessive amount of technical detail.

Jason Rosenhouse, Professor of Mathematics

James Madison University

In 1837, Peter Dirichlet proved the following theorem: If a and d are relatively prime integers, then the arithmetic progression a, a+d, a+2d, . . . contains infinitely many prime numbers. His proof ushered in a revolution in number theory because it relied in a critical way on complex analysis. The use of analytic methods to solve problems in number theory was a tremendous innovation at the time. We shall consider some of the details of Dirichlet’s proof, focusing on understanding why there is a deep connection between these seemingly unrelated branches of mathematics. Throughout, we will be more concerned with the ideas underlying the proof than we will with presenting an excessive amount of technical detail.

“Misinformed: How CS and Math Are (Mis)used to Promote Political Agendas”

Mathematics and computer science are powerful disciplines with myriad practical applications, but their central concepts can be confusing for lay people to understand. This makes it possible for ideologues to abuse those concepts in the service of political agendas. We will consider several examples of the importance of mathematical and computational literacy in considering a variety of scientific questions. We will pay particular attention to the abuse of math and CS in the literature of creationism and intelligent design.

Speaker

Jason Rosenhouse is a professor of mathematics at James Madison University. He is the author or editor of nine books on subjects such as recreational mathematics and evolution and creationism. From 2020 to 2025, he was the editor of Mathematics Magazine, published by the Mathematical Association of America. When not doing math, he enjoys chess, cooking and reading locked room mysteries.

Local elections, like those for the school board and water district, affect our daily lives—perhaps more than we realize! While so much of our collective attention is focused on national politics, local leaders often make decisions that most directly impact our day-to-day living, like which streets get bike lanes, where new housing can be built, what is taught in schools or how much our water costs.

An educated electorate is vital for a thriving democracy, which is why we are hosting these Two-Candidate Forums. Learning more about who is running for office and deciding which candidates align with your values are critical first steps in your participation in elections. So join us, get informed and vote early this November!

As part of HMC’s ongoing commitment to emergency preparedness and safety, the Office of Emergency Preparedness and Safety, in partnership with Campus Safety, will participate in the Great ShakeOut Earthquake Exercise on Thursday, Oct. 15, between 10:15 a.m. to 10:25 a.m.

The Great ShakeOut provides an opportunity for our community to practice the recommended actions to take during an earthquake: Drop, Cover and Hold On. In most situations, if you feel earthquake shaking or receive an earthquake alert, you should immediately drop to your hands and knees where you are, cover your head and neck with one arm and hand, and, if possible, take shelter under a sturdy desk or table, and hold on until the shaking stops. For this exercise, community members are encouraged to practice these steps for one minute wherever they are on campus upon receiving the Mudd Alert notification. Participants may then conclude the exercise independently or as a class.

For more information, please contact Kelly Salazar, emergency preparedness and safety manager.

Aaron Rosenthal
Senior Diagnostician, Commonwealth Fusion Systems
“Tokamaks, Fusion Energy and Plasma Diagnostics”

Take a break, and join the Office of Human Resources in the Kingston Courtyard for a Wellness Hour! Stop by to explore wellness resources, open enrollment benefits information and helpful self-care and stress-relief tools. Enjoy fun snacks, stickers and a chance to win raffle prizes.