here - Olivet Nazarene University


Another year is here, accompanied by all the excitement and energy of a new beginning. This is our 8th
year of producing a newsletter for our alumni. We
hope you enjoy it.
 Dr. Justin Brown, Amanda Price ‘14, Steven
Beckham ‘14, and Dr. Dale Hathaway
This past year the department graduated probably our largest class ever at 23 students.
Because a large graduation class is hard to replace our major numbers dropped slightly, but are
still very robust at about 70 students with either their first or second major in the Department
of Mathematics. God’s blessing are far more than we could ask or deserve!
We are still working away on our brochure for prospective students featuring profiles of many
of our alumni and what they are doing professionally. We will probably have about a dozen profiles in the brochure, but we would love to have many others for our website. If you are interested in contributing a profile, please contact the department.
Because of our growth and that of engineering, we are hoping to hire another faculty member
starting in 2015. We have not received the official go ahead yet, but if you know of someone,
which could be you, who might be interested, please let us know.
In this issue we have our Math Morsels, along with a couple of internship stories, and a new
feature: Alumni news. If you have information that you would like to share with our department
and your fellow alumni, please pass it on to us.
Please make sure that we have a current e-mail address for you so that you will not miss any of
the future newsletters.
May God continue to bless you as you do His work in this world.
In Christ,
Chair, Department of Mathematics
Andrew Corzine, a 2004 graduate with a degree in Mathematics and Business, was named
an Associate of the Casualty Actuarial Society. Andy is an Actuarial Analyst at the Medical Protective Company in Fort Wayne, IN.
Taylor Stephens, a 2013 graduate with a degree in
Mathematics Education, has resurrected the tennis team
while also teaching at Harrison High School in Colorado
Springs, CO. Taylor played tennis while at Olivet and
Qualified for the NAIA national tournament.
 Taylor Stephens ‘13 (far right) the team she coaches
Laura (Kirst) Allen, a 2011 graduate
with a degree in Mathematics Education, is in Korea teaching at Hans English
Academy, a private academy for Korean students who wish to improve their
English.
 Laura (Kirst) Allen ‘11
The Department of Mathematics has established a fund to support
scholarships for current students. This is the only Foundation scholarship
that focuses on majors in the Department of Mathematics. This year’s
recipients are Ashley Coon ‘15 and Megan Woods ’17.
 Ashley Coon ‘15
 Megan Woods ‘17
A special thank you to those who have made a gift to the Mathematics
scholarship over the past few years. With your help, the scholarship fund
has now passed $25,000 as of 12/31/2013. If you would like to contribute to
the scholarship fund and make a difference in the life of a mathematics
student, please send your contributions to:
Office of Development
Attn: The Department of Mathematics Scholarship Fund
Olivet Nazarene University Foundation
One University Avenue, Box 6003
Bourbonnais, IL 60914
Congratulations to our 2014 graduates :
Steven Beckham, B.S. Actuarial Science, Old National Bank, Mount Vernon, Illinois
Lisa Boaz, B.S. Mathematics Education/Actuarial Science, Bourbonnais Upper Grade Center,
Bourbonnais, Illinois
Joshua Brooks, B.S. Mathematics Education, Davenport North High School, Davenport, Iowa
Jamison Burchfield, B.S. Mathematics
Katie Cole, B. S. Actuarial Science, Actuarial Student, OneAmerica Financial Partners, Indianapolis, Indiana
Ryan Drenth, B.S. Mathematics Education, Momence Junior High School, Momence, Illinois
Catie Dulworth, B.S. Mathematics Education, Kankakee High School, Kankakee, Illinois
Tyler Evans, B.S. Actuarial Science, Cost Analyst, Nucor
Corporation, Bourbonnais, Illinois
John (Tom) Hall, B.S. Mathematics Education, Heritage
Grove Middle School, Plainfield, Illinois
De’Niece Harrison-Hudson, B.S. Actuarial Science,
Database Analyst, Shepherd Community Center,
Indianapolis, Indiana
 Dr. Dan Green, Dr. Nick Boros, Kristina Richardson
William James, B.S. Mathematics/Actuarial Science
‘14, Dr. Justin Brown, Andrea Richardson ‘14, Dr.
Gloria Jentz, B.S. Mathematics Education, Lansing Christian
Dale Hathaway, Prof. Darcy Ireland, Dr. Lei Cheng
School, Lansing, Michigan
Kossi Komlassan, B.A. Mathematics, Second Lieutenant, Field Artillery officer, United States Army
Garren Moore, B.S. Actuarial Science, Operations Data Analyst, Balsam Brands, Meridian, Idaho
Amanda Price, B.S. Actuarial Science, Business Development Analyst at HUB group, Homer Glen, Illinois
Steve Rachan, B.S. Mathematics Education/Actuarial Science
Andrea Richardson, B. S. Information Systems/Mathematics Education, Bradley- Bourbonnais Community
High School, Bradley, Illinois
Kristina Richardson, B.S. Actuarial Science/Mathematics Education, Momence High School, Momence,
Illinois
Lorisha Riley, B.S. Mathematics, University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, Ph.D. program
Scott Roseberg, B.S. Mathematics Education, Putnam County High School, Granville, Illinois
Reece Storey, B.S. Actuarial Science, Stillshot Photo Technician, National Football League
Carlson Triebold, B.S. Mathematics, preparing for graduate school in 2015
Adam Weeks, B.S. Mathematics/Actuarial Science, Actuarial Position, Property and Casualty
Reserving, Farm Bureau Insurance, West Des Moines, Iowa
Congratulations to John (Tom) Hall ’14 , the Department’s Outstanding Graduate
for 2014. Tom was a mathematics education major from Tinley Park, Illinois.
Congratulations to Steven Beckham ’14, Katie Cole’14, David Leman ’16, Micah
Plank ’16, and Robert Wagner ’16, who all passed the Actuarial FM exam recently
along with Garren Moore ’14, who passed the Actuarial P exam this summer.
 John (Tom) Hall ‘14
Congratulations to 2014 graduates Steve Beckham, Lisa Boaz, Jamison Burchfield, Ryan Drenth,
Amanda Price, Andrea Richardson, and Adam Weeks, who were all elected to Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities & Colleges for
2014.
Congratulations to Dr. Lei Cheng and her husband Peter as they welcomed their first
child, Caleb, on March 24, 2014.
Caleb Cheng 
Congratulations to our teams that participated in the ACCA Calculus Contest in April. Our top team
of Jaimie Chen ’16, Sam Gifford ’14, and Tune Anh Cao ’17 took second place. All three of our teams
placed in the top 21 positions out of 40 teams from 10 ACCA schools.
Congratulations to Steven Beckham ’14 who received the Larry D. Watson Ambassador award from the Department of Athletics. The award is voted on by Olivet coaches
and athletic department staff and is awarded to a male and female athlete who exemplifies the best in Christian character and witness on and off the playing field. Steve
also received the Male Scholar Athlete of the Year award.
 Steven Beckham ‘14
Congratulations to Carlson Triebold ’14 (Mathematics) and Zachery Rivett ’16 (Computer Science/
Mathematics) who both scored points on the 2013 Putnam Exam. Carlson scored
20 points while Zach scored 10 points.
Congratulations to Andrea Richardson ’14 who was the 2014 recipient of the
Maggie Sloan award presented to one outstanding female at graduation each year.
The selection is based on campus citizenship, scholarship, leadership, and general
achievement in college activities. Andrea is the second departmental winner in a
row!
Andrea Richardson ‘14 
Congratulations to Dr. Nick Boros and his wife Lindsey on the birth of their
second daughter, Katelyn Hope, born July 25, 2014. Katelyn joins big sister Libby.
Katelyn Boros 
Pi Mu Epsilon, the national mathematics honor society, inducted new members to
Olivet’s Mu Chapter during the spring semester. The new student members, listed alphabetically:
Angela Brandon ‘16, Mathematics Education, Wilmington, Ill.
Jaimie Chen ’16, Actuarial Science/Psychology, Bourbonnais, Ill.
Ashley Coon ’15, Mathematics Education, Morton, Ill.
Jessica Dieken ’15, Mathematics Education, Oregon, Ill.
Tyler Evans ’14, Actuarial Science, Bonfield, Ill.
Keila Galloway ‘16, Actuarial Science, Sachse, TX
Jonathan Fightmaster ’15, Mathematics Education, Bourbonnais, Ill.
Kaitlyn, Fitzgerald ’15, Mathematics, Duncanville, TX
De’Niece Harrison-Hudson ’14, Actuarial Science, Indianapolis, Ind.
Taylor Haymes ’14, Elementary Education, Wentzville, MO
Austin Kennell ’15, Mathematics Education, Eureka, Ill.
Caleb Macon ’14, Engineering, Manhattan, Ill.
Garren Moore ’14, Actuarial Science, Perry, OH
Alexander Phillips ’15, Engineering, Monee, Ill.
Zachary Rivett ’16, Mathematics, Howell, MI
Kara Sitton ’14 Chemistry, Naperville, Ill.
Adam Weeks ’14 Mathematics/Actuarial Science, Mendota, Ill.
 Olivet’s Mu chapter of Pi Mu Epsilon, Back row: Caleb Macon, Austin Kennell, Zach Rivett, Alexander Phillips,
Garren Moore, Ashley Coon, Jonathan Fightmaster, Tyler Evans, Dr. Nicholas Boros. Front row: Jaimie Chen, Keila
Galloway, Kara Sitton, Adam Weeks, De'Niece Harrison-Hudson, Angela Brandon, Jessica Dieken and Katie
Cole (student chapter president). Not pictured: Kaitlyn Fitzgerald, Taylor Haymes, Dr. Lei Cheng, and Professor Darcy
Ireland.
This summer, I spent 12 weeks as an actuarial intern at
Allstate in Northbrook, Illinois. In total, 19 property and
casualty actuarial interns were placed into 5 divisions,
and I was placed in the consumer household (CoHo) line
with 4 other interns. CoHo deals with some of the smaller specialty lines, so I was involved in the pricing of
personal umbrella, mobile home, trailer, and renters
insurance.
I became interested in actuarial science as a sophomore
in high school, and devoted most of my spare time to
Sam Gifford ‘15 (second from right)
preparing specifically for this career, including passing
two exams. While I was prepared for the internship and had
a rough idea of what to expect, the amount of new information that I was exposed to was quite
jarring.
At a basic level, the internship revolved around overall rate level indications – the percent that
the overall premium in a given state and line must change to meet the target level of profitability.
This can be solved with simple algebra when losses, expenses, profit, and premiums are given.
While simple in concept, there are many practical considerations that can make raw data bad
predictors of these values, so a number of manipulations to the data must be performed. As a
result, I was introduced to topics such as current rate leveling and loss development that I had
never heard of or considered before, yet are vital to the ratemaking process.
Overall, my internship at Allstate was extremely rewarding. The work performed by interns is
similar to that performed by actuarial analysts at Allstate, and we were constantly in contact with
the full-time employees, including management. We were also given a generous amount of creative freedom in our work, and as a result I had the opportunity to propose a change to the aforementioned loss development methodology for the personal umbrella line.
I am exceedingly grateful to have been offered an internship as well as a full time job as an actuarial analyst at Allstate. After years of preparation for this career, it is satisfying to discover that I
have a passion for the actual
work. I am also especially thankful
for my coworkers and fellow
interns; on top of being knowledgeable contacts, several of
them have quickly become my
best friends. I am excited to rejoin
the Allstate team in December,
and I look forward to my future
career as an actuary. 
Sam Gifford ‘15 (front left) with fellow interns at Allstate in Northbrook, IL
In the summer of 2014, between my Junior and Senior years, I had
the opportunity to intern with the Barna Group in Ventura, California. Barna Group is a market research firm that works primarily
with non-profit organizations and churches and seeks to provide
“knowledge to navigate a changing world.” Barna has one of the
most extensive databases regarding the intersection of faith and
culture in America as a result of three decades of data collection
and research.
My interest in Barna Group was sparked when I read the book
unChristian, which is authored by Barna’s president, David Kinnaman. I was struck by its relevance to my faith and the realities I saw
around me in American culture, but more so by the fact that such a
book was littered with statistics. Kinnaman’s book is representative
Katie Fitzgerald ‘15 
of most of the work done at Barna Group; their vision is to gather
hard data and shape the numbers and observable trends into a narrative that can be a voice
to the Church. I could not have been more excited to partner with an organization that
combined two of my deepest passions, faith and mathematics, in such a unique way.
During my 10 week internship with Barna Group, I assisted their research team on a variety
of projects. Through hands-on work with a market research firm I was able to observe and
participate in the overarching process of survey data collection and analysis. My work included preliminary design of
survey questions, creation of survey templates, recruitment
of survey participants, coding of qualitative data, analysis of
quantitative data to detect trends, and interpretation of
results.
During this internship, I gained a broader understanding of
what the use of mathematics outside the classroom actually
can look like. It allowed me to complement my academic
understanding of statistics with experience collecting and
analyzing real-world data in a professional setting. My work
with Barna Group also served as proof of how mathematics
and faith can intersect in unique ways and encouraged me
to continue pursuing such junctures. 
Katie Fitzgerald ‘15 in beautiful
Southern California (shown here with
her younger sister, Anna Fitzgerald)
If your company or organization offers internship
opportunities for college students, please let us know.
We would love to connect you with one of our
qualified department majors.
Dale Hathaway
Department Chair, hathaway@olivet.edu
Nicholas Boros
Assistant Professor, nboros@olivet.edu
Justin Brown
Lei Cheng
Associate Professor, jbrown7@olivet.edu
Assistant Professor, lzcheng@olivet.edu
Daniel Green
Professor, dgreen@olivet.edu
Darcy Ireland
Assistant Professor, direland@olivet.edu
Marci Reynolds
Administrative Assistant, mlreynolds@olivet.edu
NONPROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
BOURBONNAIS, IL
PERMIT NO. 61