 |
| Josh visits with former math teacher and mentor, Brian Polk, on a recent visit to DRSS. |
Josh’s plans after graduation are impressive, to say the least. He was accepted by the University of California, Irvine, to go into their Ph.D. program, where he will study geometric analysis. Josh explains that geometric analysis “involves different ways of looking at solutions to equations,” while geometric analysis "lets you go in and solve problems in different ways.” His research will focus on “looking into surfaces that will minimize energy.” The program is estimated to take five years to complete, after which he will graduate with his master’s and his doctorate. “After that, I would like to go into academia, perhaps becoming a professor some day,” he explains.
Josh was an active member of the Society of Physics Students at WSU, where he helped do outreach for the Physics Department, including at DRSS. He was also a member of the Dean’s Circle for the College of Science and Mathematics, where he did lots of outreach and acted as a liaison for his fellow students.
Josh is grateful for his time at DRSS and WSU. “The department chairs are really cool. Dr. Deibel (Physics Dept. Chair) and Dr. Sahin (Mathematics & Stats Chair) are both really supportive. You can really feel that they want you to succeed, which is something I’ve really appreciated,” he explains.
Similarly, Josh remembers his time at DRSS fondly, and credits it for his success in college. “The thing I always explain to people [about my time at DRSS] is that Mr. Polk’s Calculus class covered the entire first semester of WSU calculus and half of the next one, so I was able to skip Calc I and go directly into Calc II and already know what we were doing, so I was able to get ahead, which made my physics classes a lot easier. As soon as you know the math, you can just sit back and understand the physics, which has helped me so much.”
When asked what advice he has for current students, Josh encourages them to stay curious. “Curiosity is the thing that drives you to do problems outside of class,” he believes. “I was never the kind of person who wanted to do something for the grade, so curiosity makes you think about problems outside of class and wonder why things work one way and don’t work another way.” Josh credits his time at DRSS for fostering his natural curiosity.
Josh also has some practical advice. “Make personal connections with your teachers and professors, because lots of times they’ve been through what you have or have seen people who have been through the same thing, and they can have your back if you’re struggling in a class or going through something difficult."
Josh has many great memories about his time at DRSS, and not all are math related. “I really liked Creative Writing with Ms. Reid, because I felt like we made a personal connection. I was doing slam poetry a while ago and sent her and Ms. Whitman-Allen the first draft of a poem I had written and they provided some feedback, and people really loved it,” he recalls. “That grew out of the personal connections we made in Multi-Media and Creative Writing, and they remain supportive of me today, which I really appreciate.”
“I also always would always find an excuse to talk to Mr. Polk while I was here dropping off my brother,” he admitted.” “He would always give me advice on which classes I should take the following semester."
We wish Josh (and all our graduates) the best of luck in the next chapter of their lives!
