Susan E. Osborne,
Associate Professor of Mathematics

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 434-791-5708
Office: Davenport 105B

Mrs. Osborne is always seeking new tools for her toolbox. Not hammers, pliers and other physical tools, but mathematical principles and concepts. These tools are problem solving tools that can be applied in businesses and industries of all types. What can these mathematical tools do?  They can allow a superstore to set lower prices than any other store, determine the best possible location for a new fire station, or design a box that holds a specific volume but uses the least material.  They can schedule workers for a set of tasks, determine the best design for waiting lines in a bank, improve the quality of products through quality control and much more.  Can every problem be solved?  This depends on what you mean by a solution. Sometimes we can accept an approximate answer as good enough rather than spend an enormous amount of time to obtain the exact solution.

Occasionally, a problem can be particularly difficult to solve and, perhaps, it is even impossible to determine an exact answer.  When this is the case, the applied mathematician can build a mathematical model and use technology such as computer simulations to find an acceptable solution. Computers can run the simulations hundreds and even thousands of times in a brief time frame. Using statistics, the simulations can give a very good estimated answer.

Mathematics is an essential key in today’s business and industries. Filling your toolbox with good mathematical concepts can put you ahead of others in the workforce. Of course, just like with physical tools, one must start with simple tools and work toward using “power” tools. So come and get started discovering a new set of tools for your toolbox!

Credentials:
Master of Operations Research, Engineering, North Carolina State University.

Master of Arts, Mathematics, Wake Forest University.

Bachelor of Science, Mathematics and Business Administration/Accounting, Averett University.

Diploma, General Electronics, Danville Community College

Stephen Davidson
Instructor, Mathematics

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 434-791-7243
Office: Frith Hall 416

“Own yourself.”  That is the mantra that Stephen Davidson lives by. He lived by it as a child who proudly wore wrestling and comic book t-shirts to school. He lives by it as an adult who proudly wears wrestling and comic book t-shirts to holiday dinners. And he wants to pass along that message to anyone else who will listen. And if teaching Math is the conduit for that message, then he gets to work with math – which he loves – and he gets to make a difference, at the same time. That’s his goal.

What does it mean to “own yourself”? On the surface, it seems simple: don’t be ashamed of who you are. Even better, don’t be afraid of who you are. Others don’t matter. Only you matter. So, be yourself totally and completely. So, yes, this naturally includes expressing oneself honestly. It includes not hiding oneself for fear of others’ reactions. But it also includes not hiding from oneself out of fear or apathy. Don’t hold yourself back and don’t make excuses to do so. Anything can be justified except for fear-based justifications.

Stephen knows that not everyone loves Math. He knows that not every student who walks into his classroom is going to use it on a daily basis, once the class has ended. Very few will, to be honest. And his response to this is, “So what?” That’s a justification. It’s an excuse to hide from oneself because of a fear of the material. Nobody would voice dissent towards learning something if they truly believed they were capable of learning it. And he’s here to tell you to quit hiding, because capable you are.  All he asks is to be trusted. To be listened to. Success will not always come quickly. But, with trust and hard work, it will come for anyone who wants it. But it’s important to not only trust him, but to trust yourself, as well. “Own yourself.” You might be surprised by what follows.