Mathematics & Computer Science
Mathematics and Computer Science Department Faculty
Faculty / Adjunct Faculty
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Scott Brown brings a wide range of knowledge and experience in mathematics education to Bethel's math department. He received his B.S. and M.S degrees from the University of Wyoming and his Ed.D. in math education from Montana State University, Bozeman. Besides his academic degrees and training, Dr. Brown brings years of practical classroom experience as a mathematics teacher in the public schools of Cody, Wyoming. He teaches a wide range of courses in both mathematics and education and oversees Bethel's 5-8 and 5-12 math education programs and ensures our compliance with Minnesota teacher licensure requirements. He has recent publications in NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) Journals. He came to Bethel in 1996 and is a tenured professor of the University. Dr. Brown's interests include communication, assessment, and technology in teaching mathematics. He also enjoys fly fishing and spending time with his family in the mountains of Wyoming. email: sbrown@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6469 office: CC 227 |
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Patrice Conrath combines years of experience in teaching and mentoring math students. Her B.S. in mathematics was from Bethel College, and she has a M.S. in mathematics from the University of Oklahoma and an M.S. in Transportation Engineering from the University of Minnesota. Both masters degrees tie into her specialty of Operations Research, which she teaches every other year and which includes an extensive real-world modeling study that is carried out by her students. Recent projects include simulation modeling of Bethel's financial aid office and dining center, and McDonalds. Professor Conrath manages the math department's placement testing and recently spent a one-year sabbatical converting our paper-based placement testing to a web-based one. She also manages the hiring and training of tutors for the Math Lab, which provides academic support for Bethel students taking math courses. Professor Conrath uses principles from queuing theory and decision science to manage the schedules of her three children, lead her adult Sunday School class, and optimize the growth of plants in her garden. She is active in supporting world missions through her church and through personal missions connections with her family and friends. She was the recipient of the 1996 Distinguished Faculty Teaching Excellence Award and has several articles and presentations related to the teaching of mathematics and managing math tutoring services. email: conrath@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6348 office: CC 225 |
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Eric Gossett came to Bethel from the University of Arizona in 1984 where he received his M.S. and Ph.D. in mathematics and specialized in combinatorics. His undergraduate degree is from the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Gossett has a wide variety of interests in both mathematics and computer science teaching courses in Web programming, Discrete Math, Data Structures, Linear Algebra, and Algebraic Structures. He was one of the pioneers in the use of Mathematica within our curriculum. The second edition of his Discrete Mathematics with Proof textbook will be published by Wiley in June of 2009. Previously he received the Bethel Faculty Service Award for his work developing Bethel's first generation of web services. Dr. Gossett is a tenured professor and also an avid racquetball player and the faculty sponsor for the Bethel Anime Club. email: gossett@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6131 office: CC 224 |
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After receiving a BA in Mathematics and a BS in Computer Science from
Bethel in 2002, Nathan Gossett went to the University of Minnesota where
he completed his Ph.D. in Computer Science with a specialty in Computer
Graphics in 2007. He is happy to be back at Bethel as a Professor, and
has enjoyed activities like coaching Bethel's COMAP team which he
participated in as a student. His academic publications include works
on Information Visualization, Non-photorealistic Rendering, Tree
modeling and rendering and outdoor laser scanning applications.
email: gosnat@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6719 office: CC 230A |
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Bill Kinney came to Bethel in 1998 with a M.S. and Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Minnesota and undergraduate degree from Bethel. He teaches the complete range of mathematics courses in our curriculum from general education math courses up through the calculus sequence, linear and abstract algebra, and real analysis. He also coaches our COMAP math team which competes annually in the International Mathematical Modeling Competition. His recent sabbatical project focused on actuarial math. Dr. Kinney's research is in Dynamical Systems and he is currently working with the qualitative theory of differential equations, making geometric assumptions and then proving the existence of certain kinds of solutions. When he is not doing extraordinary things with ordinary differential equations, he plays softball, reads science fiction, and enjoys spending time with his family. email: bkinney@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6532 office: CC 229 |
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Rebecca Seaberg brings a wealth of experience to Bethel in the area of mathematics education. She has an M.A. in Mathematics Education from the University of Minnesota and received her B.A. in Mathematics and Secondary Education from Bethel. Before she taught at Bethel, professor Seaberg taught four years of junior and senior high mathematics. Since then she taught many years at Bethel as an adjunct instructor while raising her family and recently joined the full-time university faculty. She teaches a wide range of math courses at Bethel, including courses that train our elementary math teachers and the general education math courses. She has also supervised our senior math education majors as they taught in area middle schools and high schools, helping them learn how to manage a classroom and effectively present math content. She enjoys gardening during the summer, reading books about math history, and having three sons who share her enjoyment of mathematics. email: rseaberg@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-2377 office: CC 222 |
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Benji Shults came to Bethel in 2003 from Western Carolina University with a specialty in logic and automated theorem proving. His B.A. is from Colgate University and Ph.D. is from the University of Texas Austin. Dr. Shults teaches a variety of courses in both math and computer science including Software Engineering, Data Structures, Topics in Mathematics, Linear Algebra, our calculus sequence, and our Java-based programming courses. |
Brian Turnquist, Department Chair
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Brian Turnquist came to Bethel in 1997 having completed his B.S. and Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Maryland. He also earned a B.A. at Bethel in the 1980’s in Biblical and Theological Studies. Dr. Turnquist is the current department chair and teaches mainly courses in computer science including Numerical Methods, Operating Systems, Artificial Intelligence and Organization of Programming Languages. Dr. Turnquist’s current research focus is developing algorithms and software for the automated classification of neural electrical data and for the control of robotic pain stimulators. He collaborates regularly with groups at Johns Hopkins University and Yale University on joint projects related to the study of pain and itch. He recently returned from Erlangen, Germany where he spent 8 months with colleagues there who are using functional MRI to study the itch sensation in the central nervous system. He is also an avid sailor, and spends lots of time each year on the East Coast sailing the Chesapeake Bay in his Lapworth Gladiator. His crew at home includes four kids ages 2 – 10 who are learning the wonderful languages of sailing, German, and mathematics. email: turnquist@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6315 office: CC 226 |
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David Wetzell came to Bethel in 1985 with a B.A. in math from Bethel College and masters and doctoral degrees from the University of Nebraska—Lincoln. His specialty is in probability and statistics and he teaches most of our courses in this area plus nearly every other course in our mathematics major. Dr. Wetzell advises students on careers in actuarial science. He was also active in developing calculus reform materials and extending that approach into the sophomore year in the Multivariable Calculus and Differential Equations courses. He is currently serving on the faculty senate. Prior to coming to Bethel, Dr. Wetzell worked at Texas Instruments. He was an engineering systems analyst there and worked with engineers in the research and development of new products. Dr. Wetzell is an avid backgammon player and applies his knowledge of probability theory to his hapless opponents. He is also a big sports fan, especially of Bethel teams. He has three adult children and a fourth pre-teenager besides. His wife, Connie, is a special education teacher in the Anoka-Hennepin School District. He recently returned from a trip to China and has also made missions trips to Ukraine. email: wetzell@bethel.edu phone: 651-638-6405 office: CC 221 |
Faculty / Adjunct Faculty