The math lounge, located at Eggleston Commons, is a great place to spend time here at
Virginia Wesleyan University. It is located in Bray Village and offers a very resourceful place for those who are interested in any level of math education. There are multiple large whiteboards and chalkboards suitable for extensive and lengthy problems.
For example, learning integration by parts may take an entire board end to end so it is necessary to be able to work in a space larger than a standard piece of paper. Additionally, there is a comfortable couch and multiple tables to have your space and focus on your specific work or collaborate with peers.
While these are all amazing things, the best part about the math lounge is the people who are located within the offices. The math department and its faculty are not only great at teaching, but are also great humans and mentors you can relate to away from home.
They do their best to make sure you are prepared and set up with the proper schedule so that you get the most out of your time here at VWU.
They also understand that there are periods of a semester where students are overloaded and will communicate these matters to change the schedules around if needed.
Their support can range from attaboys and stress chocolates to a necessary wake up call and high expectations for what you can achieve. All this is done out of a deep devotion to students and passion for mathematics.
If you show you are willing to put in the time and effort, they are willing to work with you and do their best to have you leaving the math lounge with a better understanding than when you walked in.
I myself have spent more hours than I can count (which is a lot given my major) at the math lounge and can’t explain how much it benefitted me not only in math but in so many aspects of life as well.
I know that at times finding motivation can be hard but showing up is half the battle and having all the proper resources to continue working rather than getting stuck and frustrated is the other half. While the first half varies, the second half of the battle is easily conquered through the use of the distinguished math lounge.
While working here, you can find others to work with and help each other. All teachers for each class usually have an open-door policy as well, meaning you can ask those quick questions you’re stuck on and get an in-depth explanation that benefits you much more than Google.
Although VWU may not always give us access to the most extensive resources compared to larger and more renowned schools, depending on the individual, the math lounge is one place I’ve always found to be welcoming and encouraging regardless of who you are.
Even if you are not looking to study, you will find many interesting conversational partners and even a chess opponent. I highly recommend challenging the final boss named Zach Hope.
In summary, the math lounge offers many benefits including academics and a place to make lasting friendships and memories.
Allen Wilcox is a senior pursuing dual degrees in mathematics and computer science. He views his mathematical community at Virginia Wesleyan as “a big family” and takes pride in the diversity and relationships he has fostered academically and socially.
By Allen Wilcox
ajwilcox@vwu.edu
