University Communications and Marketing

In his first year at Pittsville High School, Joe Tritz was doing OK in geometry class, but he wasn’t taking it seriously.

 

When his teacher gave his class tests used for local mathematics competitions, however, Tritz earned the highest score.

 

“So even though my grades were average, my teacher sent me to compete in meets with the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point’s Central Wisconsin Mathematics League,” Tritz said. “I remember his instructions: Don’t embarrass me.”

 

Now an actuary with Travel Guard, Tritz says he placed fourth in that first competition. After that, he began to apply himself in class and became a top math student. He went on to attend UW-Stevens Point, majoring in mathematics.

 

“The Central Wisconsin Math League created the motive I needed to take math seriously and apply the talent I had,” he said. “It was a springboard to applying math to college and my career.”

 

His story is like many of the more than 600 students who annually take part in the Central Wisconsin Mathematics League. It marks its 45th year in 2015.

 

The league was created in 1970 by Cal Chamberlain and Cal Hessart of Wausau Insurance, John Regnier of Sentry Insurance and Howard Thoyre and Charles Johnson of the UW-Stevens Point mathematics department. The group worked together to introduce area high school students to higher level mathematics and competition, with the two insurance companies offering sponsorships.

 

Today, the Central Wisconsin Mathematics League is sponsored by Liberty Mutual Insurance, Travel Guard and Sentry Insurance, with assistance from UW-Stevens Point's Department of Mathematical Sciences. The format remains the same: Three meets are held each academic year in November, January and March, with an awards banquet in May to honor the top schools and individual winners. Fifty area high schools take part. Teams of 12 compete in geometry, algebra and advanced problems.

 

The competition continues to be administered by a committee of nine UW-Stevens Point faculty members, who volunteer to write and score the tests. Stan Carlson, a retired mathematics professor, began helping with the math league in 1971 and co-chairs the competition with UW-Stevens Point lecturer Kevin Schoenecker.

 

The two have known each other nearly as long as the math league has existed. Schoenecker’s father, Richard, taught with Carlson for many years and was on the first math league committee.

 

Another colleague, mathematics professor Nate Wetzel, has helped create questions and grade tests since 1998. He finds examples from daily life to create story problems that have real-world applications.

 

“I like giving kids the chance to see there’s more to math than solving problems in a classroom,” Wetzel said. He also enjoys being part of a competition that is similar to one he was a part of in high school.

 

“Someone gave their time to me, to get me interested in math, so now I do this work for others,” he said. “These students have talent that is just as valuable as athletes’ talent.”

 

Senior mathematics major Nic Woyak also contributes. He works as a department assistant and maintains a database of test scores from each meet. A graduate of Tri-County High School in Plainfield, Woyak was the member of the school’s math league team — a team that has taken first place in its size division and overall for 15 years in a row.

 

As a high school senior, Woyak won a scholarship created by Thoyre for a top student who attends UW-Stevens Point for mathematics-related study.

 

“I knew the program would be good,” Woyak said of choosing to attend UW-Stevens Point. “The faculty and staff give a lot of time to the math league, and that says a lot about their character.”

 

The math league also helped him discover his interests, he added. “The problem-solving skills I learned are really important, as is the dedication it takes to do well and compete at the highest level. It’s nice to work toward something, and then be rewarded.”

 

Carlson agrees. He says one of the best parts of his work with the math league is having competition alumni, like Tritz, come back to talk to current competitors and share how excelling in math made a difference in their lives.

 

“I guess that’s why I’m still involved,” he said. “I love seeing how students are so very proud of their accomplishments in math league.”

 

For more information on the Central Wisconsin Mathematics League and test questions, go to mathleague.uwsp.edu.