About
Founded in fall 2014 by Philip and Lauren Siegel, MathHappens has been exploring ideas, strategies, and partnerships to bring math into community conversations – starting in Austin, TX and expanding across the country.
Our mission is to promote math literacy by creating and distributing math models and supporting development of mathematical learning experiences outside of the classroom in our public places and spaces.
In 2022 we opened and staffed the first MathHappens Math Room at the Austin Nature and Science Center. These spaces offer families a chance to engage with hands-on math models and learning experiences – resources we’ve traditionally shared at events and programs. Since then, Math Rooms have expanded to over a dozen locations across 6 states.
In 2024, we introduced Open Play Kits – collections of mathematical hands-on activities – to children’s museums. These kits support self-guided, open-ended exploration with minimal facilitation required. To date we’ve sent over 17 kits across 15 states.
In addition to our core work, MathHappens is involved in a wide range of projects that bring math to life in communities across the country. We:
- Participate in museum and community events year-round in
- Train math teachers to use makerspace tools and create their own hands-on math models.
- Facilitate and fund math-focused field trips for students.
- Share ideas with the K–16 education community and the public through our ongoing “Math Ad” series, published in the Austin Chronicle since 2020.
- Design, make and distribute mathematical models, including over 5,000 conic section models to date.
- Serve as a founding partner in Fracture, a Mathematical Halloween Theater Experience.
If you’re interested in adding math to your public offering – through a single exhibit or by hosting a full Math Room – let’s talk! We’re actively seeking partnership projects with nonprofits and educational institutions that want to engage the public and school groups in meaningful, playful math experiences.