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Stephen B. Maurer, Past Executive Director of MathPath, died on Wednesday, August 25, 2021 at age 75. The MathPath community mourns his passing while celebrating his life and his impact, particularly with the MathPath organization.

Steve was a professor at Swarthmore College for most of his career, but he also was passionate about outreach and serving as a mentor to mathematicians of all ages. He worked for several years with the Mathematical Association of America (MAA), and joined the MathPath staff in 2003 (MathPath's second year as a summer program).

Prof. Maurer first came to MathPath at the direct invitation of Dr. George Thomas (Founder of MathPath) for three weeks as a proofs and math writing instructor. In his words, he "proceeded to make such a pest of himself, suggesting other people to hire and ways to change the program, that Dr. Thomas eventually threw up his hands," first appointing "Mr. M" (as he was known to students and staff at MathPath) as Academic Director in 2006, then chairman of the board in 2007.

Upon Dr. Thomas' taking emeritus status, Prof. Maurer became the Executive Director of MathPath in September 2014. During his tenure as Executive Director, Mr. M oversaw several positive changes in the MathPath organization. Particularly, he worked to ensure MathPath would be on solid financial footing when others were prepared to take over the running of the program in his stead.

Mr. M worked tirelessly to ensure that MathPath held successful summer programs each year - mathematically enriching classes and courses, and plenty of exciting opportunities during free time and on the weekends to keep MathPath fun. Unfortunately, Mr. M was affected by a particularly difficult form of Parkinson's disease which first affected his ability to stand and walk, and then affected his ability to write and talk. His last in-person summer was MathPath 2017, but he remained involved remotely with MathPath in 2018 and 2019.

In August 2019, he stepped down from the Executive Director position and accepted the title of Past Executive Director. He remained deeply involved with all aspects of running MathPath and served on the Board of Directors until resigning his position in August 2021. His devotion to MathPath helped ensure a successful transition to new leadership for the organization, which he supported and oversaw.

To his last, Mr. M remained devoted and involved with MathPath, having requested that gifts in his remembrance and honor be directed to MathPath - a program that would not be the program that it is without Mr. M's care, attention, and hard work.

We celebrate the extremely positive impact that Mr. M had on our organization and celebrate the legacy that he has left with us.

I would like to make a donation in Honor of Mr. M

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The Stephen Maurer Scholarship Fund

In memory of the long time support of Stephen Maurer (Mr. M) for MathPath students, we are excited to announce the Stephen Maurer Scholarship Fund. These funds will be distributed directly as scholarships to the families of no fewer than five students per year who demonstrate financial need.

Students who are awarded a Stephen Maurer Scholarship will receive the need-based amount to apply towards tuition, as determined by MathPath, and additional funding to support their domestic travel to MathPath.

All students who demonstrate financial need will be considered for the Stephen Maurer Scholarships. Financial need will be determined by MathPath in accordance to our financial aid process. The final awarding of named scholarships will be determined by the MathPath Senior Staff.

Memories of Mr. M

"Steve was amazing at making the material 'leap off the blackboard', so I knew I was experiencing something great." -- a MathPath alumnus

"We as parents also had fond memories of Mr. M, the tremendous support he gave to us inside and outside of the camp. He is forever missed." -- a MathPath parent

Please email us if you have a memory you'd like to share, or you can add it to your donation during the check out process. Please sign your memory with the name you'd like for public display. If you have a photo of Mr. M please add that to your email!