The three students being recognized have excelled in the field of Mathematics at Schoolcraft College.
Pythagoras would be proud of these Schoolcraft College students.
The ancient Greek philosopher, whose name adorns Schoolcraft College’s most prestigious mathematics prize, would be impressed with the three, all of whom have won scholarships.
The Pythagorean Prize is the Mathematics Department’s most prestigious award. Now in its 29th year, it honors the top three mathematics students of the academic year.
This year, the winners are:
- First place: Nicholas Yamine, $3,000
- Second place: Luis Xhemollari, $1,500
- Third place: Madison Grieb, $1,000
“I’m proud of our students for their achievements this year,” said Lawrence Choraszewski, a full-time Math instructor. “These students have all shown excellence in academic achievement, and we’re looking forward to honoring them this month.”
To quality for the award, students must meet the following criteria:
- Be enrolled and have taken classes at Schoolcraft College during Fall or Winter semester of the academic year of presentation.
- Be completing or have completed at least three mathematics courses at Schoolcraft College, with at least one course at the Math 200 level or above.
- Have an overall grade point average of at least 3.25.
- Have a grade point average of at least 3.50 in mathematics courses.
- Not have been a first-place winner of this award previously.
- Have submitted a completed application and essay by the deadline date.
Here are the backgrounds on this year’s winners:
Nicholas Yamine has loved math ever since elementary school. He views math “like a movie where new characters and plotlines are constantly being introduced, but there are never any inconsistencies.” Here at Schoolcraft, Nick has worked extremely hard and enjoyed tremendous success working his way through the calculus sequence, earning a 4.0 in every single math class along the way. He plans to pursue computer engineering, as it combines two areas he loves: the logic of computer science with the mathematics of electrical engineering.
Luis Xhemollari enjoyed a lot of success in mathematics in high school. However, his progress stalled in his first semester of college. He took a year off before deciding to enroll at Schoolcraft. Since then, his love of math and learning has been rekindled. Luis has been extremely successful at Schoolcraft, earning an overall GPA of 4.0. He is also an active member of the Math & Physics Club and PTK honors society. Luis plans to double major in Computer Science and Mathematics at the University of Michigan. He would love to do research in the rapidly expanding field of machine learning.
Madison Grieb came to Schoolcraft after earning a Bachelor of Arts in Biochemistry from Albion College. Following a short stint as a nurse assistant, she decided to switch gears and pursue a degree in Biostatistics. Madison chose to enroll at Schoolcraft to take the necessary math courses for this new career path. Since enrolling, not only has Madison has earned 4.0’s in all of her math courses, she has also worked as a tutor and PAL for math courses in the Learning Center. In her short time at Schoolcraft, Madison has made a big impact on campus both in the classroom and in the Learning Center.