2015 Senior Stories

Three students took Math 412 Connections Seminar in Spring 2015. Here are their short personal stories.

Jackson Bush
During my time here at GC I have been involved in a wide variety of things and have had some great experiences. Coming in to college I was really unsure of what I wanted to do as far as a major was concerned. However, I had always enjoyed my math classes in high school so I decided to at least continue taking math classes at Goshen before I figured out what I wanted to major in. I was hoping to have something stand out and really inspire me, and honestly after two years at Goshen I didn’t really feel like anything had. The classes in which I had felt the most challenged and interested were my math classes, so I decided to continue studying math.

I went on SST the spring of my junior year, which turned out to be a record-breaking winter in Goshen. However, I was able to miss almost the entire winter, spending it in sunny Peru instead. I really enjoyed SST, even with all of its trials and tribulations. For the service portion of my SST experience I lived at and worked in an orphanage on the outskirts of the amazon jungle. During this experience I discovered within myself a passion for learning Spanish, and declared a Spanish minor upon my return.

I played soccer all four years here at Goshen, which has been an unforgettable experience. The team bonding and memories are things that I will never forget. I have also been involved in the Men’s Choir and numerous Kickoffs, which are two things that I would highly recommend, especially as a first-year in order to get to know new people. My freshman year I had the privilege of living on the prestigious Miller 1, which turned out to be an amazing floor. A lot of strong friendships were created on that floor that have remained to this day.

I do not know what the future holds in store for me. I am thinking of possibly doing voluntary service in the U.S. and then hopefully abroad somewhere in a Spanish-speaking country. I am considering going to grad school after a break, but for now the prospect of going out into the real world seems pretty exciting. That and the idea of homework-free evenings.
One of my favorite memories from my time at GC so far happened at the beginning of Thanksgiving break my junior year, 2013. My friend Lucas and I had talked about trying to make the bike trip back from Goshen to Bluffton, our home town. However, up until that point in the fall our schedules hadn’t really worked out so that we would be able to try it. So, we talked about doing it for Thanksgiving break, even though the weather was not going to be ideal. Of course, people didn’t really think we were going to do it, so were pretty much obligated to try our hardest. We were hoping to make the trip around 130 miles. The morning of our departure it had snowed, but the temperature was in the upper 30s. I debated about not going for fear of dangerous weather conditions, but in the end I was convinced. So we set out around 9 or 9:30 in the morning. Over the course of the day we made sure to get lost a few times, but we still made pretty good time. We put hand and feet warmers in our socks and gloves, but in the end there was no avoiding the cold. The cable for my derailleur broke just before sundown, so I was forced to bike in one gear for the remainder of the trip. Around 8 o’clock that night we were probably still about 30 miles out from Bluffton. At that point we had been biking for around 11 hours with very few breaks, and our extremities had gone numb a long time ago. The temperature had been steadily dropping to about the mid-twenties, and we were exhausted. Neither Lucas nor I had been checking our phones really, so when we stopped in a gas station to warm up we saw our parents had been out looking for us. It turned out they had been trying to contact us for a while and had even been scouring the countryside on back roads trying to find us. Lucas and I were appalled to find out our parents had even called the police and had squad cars out looking for us. They tracked us down to the gas station we called them from and begged us to quit. And so it was with heavy hearts that Lucas and I allowed ourselves to be dissuaded from finishing our quest around 100-110 miles in and with about 30 miles to go. I don’t often get to go on adventures like that, and in fact on a day to day basis I spent a lot of time sitting down in a computer lab. So maybe that is why I would spend all day biking in the cold and getting lost, because without a few days of adventure and discomfort every now and then the everyday grind isn’t so bad.

Minah Kim
I am a Math/Accounting major. I am from a city called Chuncheon in South Korea. When I first came to Goshen College, I was only a business major but took calculus because I liked it a lot. Soon I became immersed in the world of numbers and was fascinated by the wonders and how much math is incorporated in everything (Music, modeling etc…).

I took calculus III during may term and struggled with it and often regretted taking it. However, one of the most memorable experience came one night when we were all doing homework till 1 or 2 in the morning in the math reading room. Across from us, I realized that our professor was still there with us and working. Our professor was always open to questions and was waiting till late just in case one of us needed him. When I saw that, I realized that our professor was doing this because he truly cared for us and wanted us to succeed. Goshen College’s academic strength lies in the professors.

I decided to take one more math course just for the fun of it. I took Differential Equations which was my favorite course in the math department. The modeling of prey and predator models was the best. It was truly amazing, since then I have changed to a math major and have enjoyed my academics in the department. I have made many friends in the major and have lived with a math major for 3 years.

The thing I love most about Goshen College is the people. The diversity that the student body is truly incredible. Goshen College’s students are very proactive in what they believe in. Everyone wants to make a better world. Even if there are difference of opinions people are willing to listen to each other. I learn from different people every day.

I encourage people to take math courses throughout their college career. Math is a very interesting subject and challenge people to think in depth. Also taking it with your friends is one of the best things ever. Overcoming challenges with your friends builds bonds that you can take with for the rest of your life. My favorite experience was during Calculus II when we were struggling and we would all assemble in my friend’s room and started discussing ways to solve the problem. We played around while doing the homework as well discussed other topics. I got to bond with my peers in a way just not academically but on a personal level. I have truly enjoyed Goshen College due to the friends I made and the opportunity for me to major in both math/accounting.

My distant future isn’t certain but I will be working at an auditing firm for couple of years and I want to go back to School to get my master’s in business administration or finance. I am also really interested in modeling after taking Differential equations course. My dream would be to work in a private equity sector and then go back to South Korea in order to work in the private equity sector or to teach underprivileged children or a university level where my dad is currently.

Seth A. Yoder
I am a 4th-year double major in Music (with a concentration in piano performance) and Informatics (with a concentration in math). At Goshen College, I have been able to pursue my diverse interests in deep, meaningful, and challenging ways. I enjoy practicing and performing with a number of musical ensembles, including the Men’s Choir, Chamber Choir, and small chamber ensembles. In addition, I have given sophomore and junior recitals, and this year look forward to presenting my one-hour senior piano recital and performing a Beethoven piano concerto with the Goshen College Orchestra. On the computing/Informatics front, I have led a programming club at the college, and recently placed first at the CCSC Midwest Regional Programming Contest on a team with fourth-year physics major Maria Jantz.

I was first drawn to Goshen College by the vibrant sense of community that was immediately evident during my visits. This community life is still a primary source of energy for me. Another huge draw was the SST program, which I completed in Tanzania in the spring of 2014. The study-service term was the single most transformative experience in my life; it taught me how to respectfully enter into a community using a foreign language and cultural awareness. This is a valuable skill that can only be taught by experience.

After graduating, I hope to find a job in software development. My dream career is to design data management systems for small non-profit organizations in order to streamline their important work. This is a career path that would I would find both morally and intellectually fulfilling, and these are the characteristics of success in my definition.