Students Designated "Meritorious" in Mathematical Modeling Contest

Two of the four teams of students representing Westminster College in the international Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM) were designated as "meritorious."

Of the 949 teams participating in the contest, only 122 teams received such an honor. Two meritorious teams from one college places Westminster College with the elite of the contest. Westminster is noted for having four teams, the maximum number of MCM teams allowed on one campus.

Designed to provide students with an experience similar to that which a qualitative scientist or applied mathematician is likely to encounter in industries or research laboratories, the contest challenges high school students and college undergraduates to clarify, analyze, and propose solutions to open-ended problems. Students and advisors from over 500 institutions around the world participate in the contest.

The team consisting of the following students earned a meritorious ranking for a paper on efficiently loading passengers onto an airplane:
Bryan Bischof of Gibsonia is a son of Steve Salvatora and Diana Salvatora of New Kensington. He is a junior mathematics major and a graduate of Valley High School.
Andrew Polack of Abingdon, Md. is a son of Samuel and Barbara Polack. He is a senior computer science and mathematics major and a graduate of Edgewood High School.
James Bryan of Greensburg is a son of Leigh Bryan-Taylor and James Bryan of Greensburg. He is a sophomore mathematics major and a graduate of Greater Latrobe High School.

The team consisting of the following students earned a meritorious ranking for a paper on gerrymandering:
Ryan Brolley of Butler is a son of Timothy and Lynne Brolley. He is a senior mathematics major and a graduate of Knoch High School.
Ryan Moore of Darlington is a son of Robert and Linda Moore. He is a senior computer science major and a graduate of Blackhawk High School.
Anthony Colwell of North Huntingdon is a son of David Colwell and Antonette Colwell of Pittsburgh. He is a junior mathematics and philosophy major and a graduate of Central Catholic High School.

The contest took place the first weekend of February. Teams downloaded problems on a Thursday night and submitted a proposed solution to Dr. Barbara Faires, MCM faculty advisor and Westminster College professor of mathematics, on Monday night.

Contact Faires at (724)946-7293 or e-mail faires@westminster.edu for more information.

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