Isaac Shailor, a high school student who has been taking advanced mathematics courses at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside since middle school, placed among the top 500 scorers in the William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition, according to an April 2 announcement.
The competition is considered one of the most prestigious mathematics contests for undergraduate students in North America. Shailor’s achievement highlights both his dedication and the support he received from UW-Parkside faculty.
Shailor began his advanced studies with an Advanced Calculus class (MATH 350) while still in eighth grade and continued with several independent study courses under the guidance of Professor Victor Kreiman. “Isaac has taken a number of other courses with us. Most of these have been independent study courses in which he read math books and met with us weekly to discuss the readings. Over the past year, in his independent study courses, Isaac has created original mathematics, both problems and solutions, comparable to the mathematics produced at the level of professional research,” Kreiman said.
In addition to placing approximately 231st out of all competitors on this year’s Putnam exam as part of Parkside’s second-place state team, Shailor has also earned awards such as The Van Vleck Scholarship—the top prize given by the Mathematics Department at University of Wisconsin-Madison for excellence in Mathematics, Science, and Engineering.
Reflecting on his experience at UW-Parkside, Shailor said: “Since I was in 8th grade, UW-Parkside Math Professor Victor Kreiman has given me an incredible amount of support and guidance. I am so grateful to have a university in our community that has made this journey possible!”
Shailor’s accomplishments underscore opportunities available for talented young students through collaboration between local universities and schools.
