Math Mentor

Math Mentor Mission Statement

The mission of the UVU Math Mentor Program is to provide opportunities for students who have overcome their struggles in mathematics to develop the skills necessary to return and help students in developmental math courses through:

  1. Teaching and Encouraging Metacognitive Practices
  2. Mathematics Learning Strategies and Study Skills
  3. Student-to-Student Interaction

What is a Math Mentor?

High five

Math mentors are UVU students who have recently either completed a developmental mathematics course or a mathematics course that satisfies their quantitative literacy requirement. Math mentors model self-awareness, critical thinking, and commitment to rigorous academic standards. They support their instructors by aiding in the planning and facilitations of their classes. Math mentors help students in developmental mathematics courses by helping them discover how to be smart learners of mathematics through study groups as well as studying independently.

Requirements

Student talking to math tutor
  • Be an example of a successful student.
  • Participate in the pre-Fall semester Bootcamp (held in early August).
  • Attend, facilitate, and take part of the weekly requred mentor trainings.
  • Meet weekly with assigned mentor
  • Complete 10 mentoring hours per week.  These hours will consist of time spent in assigned MAT courses as well as time spent helping students in or outside the classroom.

Become a Math Mentor

math mentor helping student

Complete the prerequisite developmental mathematics course with a B (3.0) or higher. Maintain an overall academic GPA of 3.0 or higher. Math mentors need to be referred by their prior mathematics instructor, who looks for the following qualities in a math mentor:

  • Dependability
  • Timeliness
  • Ability to interact and work with others
  • Leadership and initiative
  • Excellent study skills

Math Mentors in Action

Meet the Administrators

Ben Moulton

Ben  Moulton

Director

Howdy! I’m Dr. Benjamin Moulton and I have had the privilege of being the math mentor director since its inception in 2008. I’m a native Montanan, with a BS in Mathematics and a BA in Modern Languages from Montana State University – Bozeman, MS in Civil/Environmental Engineering from Brigham Young University, and a PhD in Education from Walden University. I enjoy being with my family, cycling and reading, and hanging out with all these awesome math mentors!

serena

Serena Buss

Program Coordinator

Hello friends! My name is Serena Buss. I’ve taught at UVU since 2009 and I’m the Math Mentor Program Coordinator – which is the BEST job ever! I’m passionate about inclusion and educational opportunity for all. I love my students and having the privilege to be part of their journey. I love to be outside hiking, biking, kayaking, and anything really! I play several instruments; banjo is the coolest! I like to paint, and build stuff, but my most favorite pastime is spending time with my family and traveling.

 

Meet the Team Leads

 

Sarah Keeley

Sarah Keeley

Team Lead

My name is Sarah Keeley. I'll be majoring in Computer Science here at UVU, and I'm excited to become a Math Mentor! I enjoy helping people learn and grow, and I look forward to meeting everyone. Math used to be a subject I struggled in, but with the right people leading me through the difficulties, it's become a subject I really enjoy and respect! I like to draw, write, 3D print, make games, and more in my free time, and I value being creative. I love learning about the world and how it works. I am excited to be a part of this team!

Quetzal Martinez

Quetzal Martinez

Team Lead

Hello! My name is Quetzal. I’m a sophomore at Utah Valley University, majoring in art history. I enjoy getting to know people as a math mentor. I love watching old movies, playing tennis, baking, and visiting art museums. Eventually, I want to work as an art curator. My dream job is to be the art curator for the Dallas Museum of Art. Apart from art history, my favorite class is Spanish, and I love practicing it with friends and family whenever I can.

Kayla Pahl

Kayla Pahl

Team Lead

Greetings. I'm a senior psychology major and creative writing minor with dreams of one day being a therapist. I hail from Grantsville (a town just south of the Great Salt Lake). To me, being a math mentor is great because I get vicarious joy out of helping others conquer the world. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, writing, snowboarding, jiu jitsu, learning bits of other languages, psychoanalyzing the weirdo I married, and laughing at my own jokes.

Brendan

Brendan Williams

Team Lead

I’m Brendan. I am studying mechanical engineering major here at UVU. I love to be with other people. I love every moment I get to socialize with old friends or to make new ones. A few of my hobbies are juggling, unicycling, storytelling, and sword fighting. If I could be anywhere, I would be on an adventure in the mountains exploring new places, hiking, or camping.

 

 

Meet the Mentors 

 

Casey Black

Casey Black

Team Member

Heyo! Born and raised in the Orem/Provo area, love cooking and rock climbing, and I ride a penny board around campus, yes I have wiped many times. I don't love math but I love teaching people how to learn stuff, it's fun. I just got back from an LDS mission where I served partially in McAllen Texas (the southeast part of Texas). The rest I served as a service missionary in Provo helping with the LDS Motion Picture Studio. Now I'm studying Information Systems (the middle man for business and computer people). I am working towards a professorship in that.

 

Lindsay Burgener

Lindsay Burgener

Team Member

Hi! My name is Lindsey Burgener, and I’m an ASL major with an emphasis on Interpreting. I used to struggle with math, but I’ve learned how to be successful in it, and now I love to help other people! Some things I like to do include swim team, singing, and ASL.

Darsie Davis

Darsie Davis

Team Member

Hi! My name is Darsie and I am from California. I am majoring in Forensic Science in hopes to become as CSI or Death Investigator or whatever life holds for me. I enjoy outdoor activities from hiking, fishing, boating and rock climbing.  I am also fond of art and art history, so any cool art facts feel free to tell me. I am excited to Mentor this year and help you succeed. 

 

Brianna Farillas

Brianna Farillas

Team Member

Hi Ya’ll! My Name is Brianna Farillas. I am a senor at Utah Valley University, Majoring in Communications and minoring in ASL and Spanish. I love being able to meet so many students by being a math mentor. I love working out, problem solving and cooking. My overall goal is to go to law school and study International law and work with non profit organizations in South America. I love traveling and going on to new places as often as I can!

Jessica Frank

Jessica Frank

Team Member

Hi y’all, my name is Jessica Frank. I am a sophomore, majoring in Elementary Education. I am currently living is Santaquin, it is about 35 minutes from UVU. I love doing anything outdoors, playing with my animals is one of my favorite things. Family is the most important thing to me, I love going to wrestling tournaments with my family.

 

Sami Giles

Sami Giles

Team Member

Hi! My name is Sami Giles and I’m from Kaysville, Utah. This is my Sophomore year here at UVU. I’m a History and Social Studies Education Major, because I plan to be a high school history teacher once I graduate. I’m very excited to be a mentor! I am super passionate about education and I love helping others! In my free time I like to listen to music or podcasts, paint, and spend time with friends & family. I also spend a lot of my time trying to create a safer, more inclusive society for LGBTQ+ individuals, especially among youth & young adults. I love being able to connect with people & help them succeed, and I can’t wait to do that as a math mentor!

Oscar Guerrero

Oscar Guerrero

Team Member

I'm Oscar! I'm majoring in elementary education. I know what it's like to struggle with math, and that's why I want to help others. Math is practically another language, and it's one many struggle to become fluent in. I'm not hyper-fluent, but I can help you improve and develop math skills needed for the future. Some of my hobbies include binging Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube, assembling LEGO sets and diving into Star Wars lore. I also have an odd fascination with natural disaster and man made disasters. I love being a math mentor and I look forward to helping you succeed!

Nathan Gray

Nathan Gray

Team Member

My name is Nathan Gray. I am studying Psychology, Family Science, and Leadership. I am a senior and am in my last semester. Wish me luck with figuring out grad school, haha. I enjoy playing pickleball, watching most things Marvel and Star Wars, and spending time with my family. I was a math mentor for two years but left the program to pursue other aspirations. I am excited to be a math mentor again for one last hurrah!

Derek Haskell

Derek Haskell

Team Member

Hey! My name is Derek Haskell, this is my first semester as a math mentor, and I'm excited to be part of a great team. I'm an Information Technology major, working towards a bachelor's emphasizing network administration and cyber security. I mountain bike and like to participate in cyber security capture the flag challenges in my free time. My experience as a math mentor has been amazing, it is rewarding when a student fully understands a concept and walks away with more confidence in their math skills.

Alley Holt

Alley Holt

Team Member

Hi! My name is Alley Holt. I was born and raised in Utah County and am a junior here at UVU. I’m majoring in Political Science and hope to head to law school. I’m excited to be a math mentor this semester for all the wonderful people I get to meet and help. I like to hike, ski, draw, read, and hang out with friends or family. Really I love trying new things, whether it be indoors, outdoors, on my own, or with a group of friends.

Nolan Jacobs

Nolan Jacobs

Team Member

Hi! My name is Nolan. I'm a student and Math Mentor at UVU. I'm majoring in biology, and I love science! I'm addicted to Dungeons and Dragons, video games, reading, puzzles and board games. I enjoy a good challenge and solving problems. I want to work as an infectious disease specialist in either research, treatment or prevention (not that there's a shortage of demand for that sort of thing right now). I love being a Math Mentor and am ready to help you with your education! 

 

Gabby Jensen

Gabby Jensen

Team Member

Hi Friends! My name is Gabby Jensen. This is my fourth year being a Math Mentor, and I was a Team Lead for the past two years. I love what I do as a mentor, and being able to peruse my education, while helping others to do the same. I'm grew up in New York, and I'm studying Communion at UVU. I've been married for two years, and my husband and I love doing everything together. We are huge Star Wars fans, and we love road trips, cooking, movie nights, trying new restaurants, and traveling to Disney.

Haven Jensen

Haven Jensen

Team Member

Hello everyone! My name is Haven Jensen (They/Them). I am currently unsure what I want to major in. I am very excited to help others succeed in math especially since I used to struggle with math a lot. I enjoy drawing, art projects, listening to music, playing video games, and spending time with my family and friends. I love to learn new things and I am always curious about the world. I value creating a safe and accepting environment for everyone.

Davis Kuerth

Davis Kuerth

Team Member

My name is Davis Kuerth, this is my first time being a math mentor and I have loved it so far! I am from Layton, Utah and I graduated from Layton high in 2018. My major is Mechatronic engineering tech, I am a freshman. In my free time I love to play soccer, box, mountain bike and play video games.

Emily Montgomery

Emily Montgomery

Team Member

I'm sweet Emily Montgomery. I've lived in Provo Utah all my life and don't know if I like it or not. I'm an English major with a Creative Writing focus, so I'm all about finding ways to take over the world. When I'm not doing homework I read a lot, play tabletop RPGs and deck building games. If you're in my classes, I can't wait to meet you!

Hannah Oldroyd

Hannah Oldroyd

Team Member

Hey y'all, my name is Hannah Oldroyd, and I'm from Gainesville, Georgia. I'm a sophomore at UVU and am considering majoring in Secondary Education. This is my first year as a Math Mentor, and I'm so excited about this opportunity. I love going to visit my family back home, skiing in Park City, hanging out with my friends, going to the park with my dog, and helping others! I am super excited for this semester and all that's to come with this great opportunity. 

Ethan

Ethan Robertson

My name is Ethan Robertson. I'm currently pursuing a major in biotechnology. I'm forklift certified 😎 but not through OHSA. Fall is my favorite season because winter is frigid; spring is constantly windy; and summer is charring. I love outdoor activities such as skiing, hiking, and rock wall climbing. But due to time constraints imposed by school I've been taking great pleasure in video games (I'm currently grinding out the Doom series). A hidden passion of mine is helping friends, family, peers, and whatnot.

Kadie Waldren

Kadie  Waldren

Team Member

Hey there! My name is Kadie Waldron. I am from California and am currently majoring in Special Needs Education here at UVU! Aside from teaching I love writing, photography, and any activity that gives me the freedom to be creative. This is my first semester as a math mentor, but I am so excited for the opportunity to help others learn to appreciate math in the same way I do! < 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

whole group 2022-2023