About
Founded in the fall of 2014 by Philip and Lauren Siegel, MathHappens has been exploring ideas, options, strategies and partnerships to bring math into community conversations here in Austin, elsewhere in Texas, and in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia, New York, California and more. In Spring 2022 we opened The MathHappens Math Room in a partnership with the Austin Nature and Science Center. In January 2023 The Houston House of Math opened and in February 2023, MathHappens@Explora opened in Albuquerque, NM.
At all three locations we offer access to the models and activities for the public on the weekends and there are special programs during the week in Houston and Austin. Programs in Austin and Houston are free. These are spaces where the public can go in person, to use the hands-on, engaging math models and learning experiences that we have been bringing to events and programs hosted by informal education institutions since 2014. Our materials can also be used at math festivals, and in maker spaces, libraries, museums and public venues of all kinds. We are interested in collaborations to open more permanent learning spaces in more communities, and we support outreach projects by other educators that communicate mathematical ideas, engage diverse learner populations and create more public access through grants, collaborations, and an open exchange of ideas.
Affiliations and Collaborations:
City of Austin, Austin Nature and Science Center, Austin Public Library Central and Southeast Branches, Houston House of Math, University of Texas UTeach, UTeach Maker Program, Austin Museum Partnership, Austin ACCESS to Learning. STEM Santa Fe, Bridges to Math and Science, Math2thePoint, Breakthrough Austin, Math Circles of Houston, Public Math, Math4Love, Scott Kim, JRMF, SUMM, AIM Math Communities.
Activities:
Staff, supply and facilitate the MathHappens Math Room, and the Houston House of Math and MathHappens@Explora; participate in the museum communities in Austin throughout the year at individual events and through repeating programs and field trips; train math teachers to use maker space tools to make their own math models; facilitate and fund field trips. Share ideas with the k-16 education community and the public through a "Math Ad" published in the Austin Chronicle and Orange Leader since 2020. Make and distribute selected models including the conic section model (over 5000).
Mission:
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.