Richard Bland College Representatives Selected for the William & Mary Board of Visitors
Richard Bland College of William & Mary President Debbie L. Sydow has nominated Associate Professor of Mathematics Matthew J. Smith, Ph.D. as the RBC Faculty Representative, and Kayla Zanders as the RBC Student Representative to the Board of Visitors of the College of William & Mary for the 2017-18 academic year.
Dr. Smith has more than a decade of experience teaching mathematics. He recently conceived, developed and directed the implementation of a project at Richard Bland College that utilizes adaptive learning technology in developmental mathematics education, increasing success in mathematics and momentum toward graduation. Dr. Smith earned both his Ph.D. (Biomedical Engineering, 2008) and M.S. (Mathematics, 2000) degrees from Virginia Commonwealth University, and his B.S. degrees (Mathematics, Mathematics Education, 1996) from North Carolina State University. He holds a board certification in toxicology, is a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology® and has authored more than 25 manuscripts, 30 abstracts, 50 technical reports and two book chapters. He has two children and resides in Dinwiddie County.
“I’m truly honored to have been selected and look forward to working on behalf of RBC faculty with President Sydow, Rector Todd Stottlemyer, RBC Committee Chair John Littel and other members of the RBC Committee and Board to further the College’s mission and goals in pursuit of 100% student success,” said Dr. Smith.
Kayla Zanders is a sophomore from Virginia Beach. She is a Statesman Scholar honor student at Richard Bland College, and will graduate in May 2018 with an Associate in Arts degree. Zanders plans to continue her education at William & Mary, majoring in International Relations with a career goal to serve as a Foreign Services Officer. While in high school, she was a Principal’s List student, National Japanese Honor Society inductee and member of the Japanese Club. Zanders also participated in the The Kakehashi Project, a fully-funded, large-scale youth exchange program between Japan and the United States promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.
“Richard Bland has gifted me opportunities by creating a strong academic foundation,” said Zanders. “I now have a chance to be the voice for RBC students and look forward to serving as a bridge between my peers and the Board.”
The first William & Mary Board of Visitors meeting for the 2017-2018 academic year will be held from September 13-15 in Williamsburg.
