In September, the Department of Applied Mathematics announced that David Armendariz would be the recipient of the 2022 Rudy Horne Memorial Fellowship.
David is a first year Ph.D. student in the Applied Mathematics graduate program who previously graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics with a concentration in Applied Mathematics. Now joining the Applied Math Department here at CU Boulder, David explained his goals in his studies: 鈥淚 hope to become a better learner, researcher, and educator. I am passionate about math and am very excited to be starting this next stage in my career. I鈥檓 curious about a wide range of topics and am grateful that I have the privilege to pursue those curiosities. Beyond that, I think that math can be a powerful tool and in the future I hope to use it to contribute something positive to the world!鈥�
The Rudy Horne Memorial Fellowship, as stated by the Applied Math Department, was founded with the goal that fellowship recipients 鈥渨ould, through their presence in the department, contribute to the diversity of the department of Applied Mathematics and of the campus, and more generally, of the community of mathematicians.鈥� David commented on the honor to be awarded this fellowship:
鈥淚鈥檓 humbled to be receiving this fellowship in the name of a mathematician like Rudy Horne. It serves as a reminder to stay motivated, to work hard, and to work to make math accessible for all.鈥�
David noted that his original motivation to pursue mathematics came to him when he was young:
鈥淚 was fortunate enough to discover my passion for math from an early age and also to have enough positive experiences with math that facilitated that passion. Even still, I wasn鈥檛 aware that being a mathematician was an attainable career choice and knew even less about what the path to a career in math would look like. There are many reasons that you or others around you could find as to why pursuing something that you care about is not an ideal choice.鈥�
The Rudy Horne Fellowship is founded upon giving an opportunity to students who are passionate about building an inclusive community within APPM and encouraging diversity in the applied mathematics field 鈥� one that only thrives with contributions from a wide range of people who come from all walks of life. David embraces this sentiment, explaining:
鈥淭here are many obstacles that others may face in the path to grad school that I can鈥檛 claim to relate to, most probably much harder than those that I had to overcome. My advice to those in an earlier academic stage than me is that if you鈥檙e interested in it, then that鈥檚 reason enough to pursue it. There are people who want you to see you succeed and join their community working towards an overarching goal.鈥�