WY says goodbye to beloved Math Center

Anna Dennis and Emma Purcell

The Math Center was a resource room where WY students could receive support with their mathematics courses. It operated in Blue House Lunch Room from 3rd Period, 10:00 am until 4:15 pm. Students were encouraged to drop-in during their lunch period or instructional support period for help. However, the Math Center is no longer a resource available to students. Ms. Dotson, Chairman of the Math Department, stated that this change was due to lack funds available in the budget saying, “Schools didn’t get budgets until pretty late in the summer and the budgets were much smaller than principles anticipated. They had to make cuts in places that they could with the least amount of loss and damage to the school”. The math lab was a helpful resource but by closing it, WY was able to maintain all the math teachers needed for classes.

The Math Center was used by students from all grades to gain clarity and further their understanding of their math courses. It was a greatly appreciated resource. “The math center allowed people who would usually say, ‘I’m just bad at math!’ to actually learn on their own free time,” said Richard Chao ‘17. Students were able to get questions answered on the same day as their math courses instead of having to wait until later in the week or over the weekend to meet with a tutor. The math lab was used by numerous students on a regular basis, many whom visited multiple times a week. “I went to the math center a couple days every week last year. I found it really beneficial as a place to study and get tutoring,” said Mariah Helm ‘17.

The math lab left a big impression on those who used it and is greatly missed by many. “I appreciated the math center because Ms. Gustavson would always find a new way to help me approach a question. It helped me foster my problem solving skills, and gave me a positive community of students working on math. I really miss being able to ask a question or study during my lunch period instead of having to coordinate appointments with my math teacher. I hope WY can reinstate the math center eventually!” said Carolina Cannon ‘17.

Thankfully, this is not the end of this amazing resource. Ms. Dotson is working alongside Friends of WY, as well as LSC president Ms. Durudogan and Ms. Bailey to try and raise funds to reopen the lab. It will most likely not be exactly as it has been in the past years but will still be a resource that can be beneficial to students in their math studies. It is possible that, when reopened, the math lab will be facilitated by not only teachers but also students from surrounding universities such as UIC, Depaul or Northwestern. It is hoped that the math lab will be reopened in the next 2-4 weeks.

Students can show their interest in reopening the Math Center by supporting Friends of WY in their fundraising or by reaching out to CPS to raise awareness on the impact the resource has had on learning.