Meet our cohort

Carlos Castillo-Garsow works as an assistant professor at Eastern Washington University, specializing in secondary mathematics education. He has also taught high school algebra and precalculus at schools in Arizona and Washington. Carlos primarily works in the area of conceptual semantics, studying how students, teachers, and mathematicians use mathematics as a language to convey their ideas, and what their choices of words tell us about the mathematics that they are imagining. He focuses on mathematical modeling and the development of a mathematical perspective on non-mathematical problems.

Jeff Crawford works with secondary mathematics teachers in the Mead School District. As a curriculum and instructional specialist, Jeff supports teachers and administration with implementing best practices, curriculum, and instructional tools that reflect current research. Having taught for over 20 years at university and high school levels, Jeff combined his experience in teaching mathematics with his passion for quality materials in endeavors that led him to work with groups throughout Washington State and the nation. His current work with EdReports, Student Achievement Partners, and Illustrative Mathematics inspires him to continue growing personally and increase the effect of his impact on the mathematical community. Jeff hopes that his work will further the awakening of mathematics in our schools and communities.

Raymond Dempsey has six years experience as a university developmental mathematics lecturer and currently teaches at Eastern Washington University. As a graduate teaching assistant, he wrote a master’s thesis entitled “Determining the Alignment of Math 105 – Intermediate Algebra at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to the Goals of the Common Core State Standards.” He also creates supplemental learning materials for students on YouTube.

Becky Sommers is currently a mathematics lecturer at Eastern Washington University and was previously a mathematics teacher at Deer Park High School.  Becky’s classroom experience with both college and high school math students has lent itself well to this project and the investigation of how to improve mathematics education.