Dr. Bette Warren

by Sandy Becker, Newsletter staff

Take one glance into the Department Head’s office, and it’s clear that something has changed. There is a pink flamingo sitting on the bookshelf. Dr. Bette Warren has moved in.

Dr. Warren accepted the position as Acting Department Head for the 2001-2002 academic year and started her new job in late August. “So far, I’m trying to get to the surface, so I can tread water,” she says. Aside from the usual adjustments that come with having a new job, Warren is pleased with how things are going.
“I’m impressed at how things can get done around here,” she says. “And, Don [Lick] is around to help – that makes a difference.”

Dr. Warren came to EMU in 1984 from SUNY-Binghamton where she was Director of the Actuarial Program. She has been involved in numerous committees and programs at EMU, including Faculty Council and the Symposium Committee. She is active in the Mathematical Association of America-Michigan Section and gives presentations at conferences on a regular basis. What comes first on her personal list of activities as a faculty member though?
“Teaching,” she says. “I’ve done lots of teaching.”
Dr. Warren is teaching one course during fall semester and hopes to add Math 370: Probability and Statistics back to her roster for winter semester. To stay connected with students, she is also tutoring for about one hour each week in the Math Student Services Center. All tutors must wear nametags (even the Department Head), though most of the tags reflect nicknames given by fellow tutors. Dr. Warren’s nametag says “Thing One” and “Thing Two,” honoring her love of Dr. Seuss.
Dr. Warren likes humor and jokes, frequently attends theater performances, watches movies, and bowls “once every three or four years” – an activity she enjoys with one of her two grown sons. She likes to know how people figure things out and how people reason probabilistically. And, she enjoys reading, especially about history. “I like stories,” she says, “stories about human beings.”
Dr. Warren’s interest in the human element is reflected in her long-term hopes for the department. She would like to see the department evaluate ways to serve students better and work on a more interdisciplinary level to prepare students for the specific kinds of jobs they strive for. She’d also like to think of creative ways to recruit graduate students, get alumni involved in the department, and increase the department’s outreach to get younger students interested in math.
Dr. Bette Warren has enjoyed her time at EMU and does not hesitate to call the department a family and a home. She hopes to facilitate building connections between departments and faculty members who can help each other with projects and programs.
“I want the department to do well by everybody,” she says. “I just want people to have what they need.”