Carolyn Mahoney facts for kids

Carolyn Ray Boone Mahoney, born in 1946, is an American mathematician. She also served as the president of Lincoln University of Missouri. Dr. Mahoney's studies focused on interesting areas of mathematics like combinatorics, graph theory, and matroids.

About Carolyn Mahoney

Early Life and School Days

Carolyn Mahoney was born in 1946 in Memphis, Tennessee. She was the sixth of thirteen children. Her grandmother helped care for the children while her mother worked. Carolyn went to Catholic schools, where the nuns encouraged her love for mathematics.

During her teenage years, Carolyn's parents separated. Her family then moved to a different neighborhood. Even with these challenges, Carolyn and her siblings were known for being very smart. She finished high school at Father Bertrand High School in 1964.

Higher Education and Math Studies

After high school, Carolyn attended Mount St. Scholastica College in Kansas for three years. She then completed her mathematics degree at Siena College in Memphis in 1970.

She continued her education, earning a master's degree in mathematics in 1972. Later, in 1983, she earned her doctorate (Ph.D.) in mathematics. Both of these advanced degrees were from Ohio State University. Her doctorate research involved matroid theory and enumerative combinatorics. She was the 25th Black woman in the U.S. to earn a Ph.D. in mathematics.

Carolyn Mahoney's Career

Teaching and Early Roles

After getting her doctorate, Dr. Mahoney began teaching. She taught at Denison University from 1984 to 1989. She also taught at Ohio State for two years. From 1986 to 1989, she helped develop tests for the College Board.

In 1989, Dr. Mahoney made history at California State University San Marcos. She was the first mathematician chosen to be on the faculty there. She was also one of the twelve founding faculty members of the San Marcos campus.

Leadership and University Presidency

Dr. Mahoney also worked for the National Science Foundation in 1994 and 1995. Later, she became an administrator at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina.

In 2005, Dr. Mahoney was named president of Lincoln University of Missouri. She led the university until her retirement in 2012.

Contributions to Mathematics and Education

Research in Math

Dr. Mahoney's research mainly focused on unsolved problems in graph theory and combinatorics. Besides her work on matroids for her doctorate, she also published research on the Hadwiger–Nelson problem. This problem is about coloring points on a graph.

Advocacy for Diversity

Dr. Mahoney believes that being a Black woman in mathematics made it harder to find people to work with on research. She strongly supports making education better. She especially wants to see more cultural diversity among university teachers. She feels that groups like the Mathematical Association of America and the Association for Women in Mathematics have helped improve the environment for women in math.

Awards and Recognition

In 1989, Carolyn Mahoney was honored by being inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame.

To recognize her achievements, a scholarship at CSU San Marcos was named after her. Also, a walking trail at Lincoln University now carries her name.

In 2018, Dr. Mahoney was recognized by Mathematically Gifted & Black as a Black History Month honoree.