Hortensia Soto facts for kids
Hortensia Soto is a super smart Mexican-American math teacher and professor. She teaches mathematics at Colorado State University. In 2018, she became an important leader for the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). She was even elected to be the President-Elect of the MAA in 2021!
Early Life and Learning
Hortensia Soto was born in a special type of house called a sod house in a small town in Mexico. When she was just one year old, her family moved to a farm in Nebraska, USA. She grew up there. Even when she was young, people noticed she was very good at math. In high school, she was so good that she sometimes helped teach math classes!
Hortensia Soto first started studying political science at Eastern Wyoming College. But she soon changed to math! She earned her first degree in mathematics and a master's degree in math education from Chadron State College in Nebraska. This was in 1988 and 1989. Later, she got another master's degree in math from the University of Arizona in 1994. She finished her highest degree, a Ph.D. in educational mathematics, at the University of Northern Colorado in 1996.
Her Career in Math
Hortensia Soto started her career at the University of Southern Colorado. From 1989 to 1992, she was in charge of the Mathematics Learning Center there. This is a place where students can get extra help with math. In 1995, she became a math professor at the same university. She became a full professor in 2001. This university is now called Colorado State University–Pueblo.
In 2005, she moved to the University of Northern Colorado. She became a professor there and was promoted to full professor in 2014. After that, she moved to Colorado State University to teach math.
At the University of Northern Colorado, Hortensia Soto started a special summer program for high school girls. It was called "Las Chicas de Matemáticas: UNC Math Camp for Young Women." She ran this camp from 2008 to 2014. She also went back to rural Nebraska to help with a program that teaches math to teachers.
She is also a leader in the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). She has been involved with the MAA for a long time. In 2018, she became the Associate Secretary of the MAA. In 2021, she was chosen to be the President-Elect of the MAA! This means she will lead the organization starting in 2022.
Awards and Recognition
Hortensia Soto has received many awards for her amazing work in mathematics.
- In 2001, her old college, Chadron State College, gave her their Distinguished Young Alumni Award.
- In 2012, the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) gave her a Meritorious Service Award. This award is for people who have done a lot to help the MAA.
- In 2016, she won the Burton W. Jones Distinguished Teaching Award. This award is for excellent math teachers.
- In 2018, she won the Deborah and Franklin Haimo Award. This is another big award for great college math teachers.
She is also featured in a special deck of playing cards! These cards show important women mathematicians. They were published by the Association of Women in Mathematics.
See also
In Spanish: Hortensia Soto para niños
