Max Ritter left High School, remembering just how much he hated math. A few years later, he earned a $4,000 scholarship for excelling in mathematics and providing leadership in advancing the mission of Mu Alpha Theta Mathematics Honor Society (MAT). Saint Paul College hosts an active chapter of MAT with the Math Club. Max Ritter earned this scholarship by increasing diversity among Math Club members and actively participating in the AMATYC Student Research League. This scholarship is available for recipients to use as they wish, which provided Max with options for managing his personal and educational budgets and relieving financial stress.

Recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic when campus activities slowed down, Max was instrumental in re-engaging students and re-igniting interest in math topics. He led numerous invigorating presentations geared toward all students, including those intimidated by math. Some of his topics with the student body included Mathematics Behind Tic Tac Toe, All About Circles, and Fibonacci Sequence. His leadership focused on instilling reasoning and interpretation skills for a range of math subjects to help students utilize more math skills in daily living. His leadership style was similar to Saint Paul College Math Instructor Ben Orlin, who spoke on How to Speak Math at a large international conference.

After earning his prerequisites at Saint Paul College, Max was happy to enroll in the new Minnesota State-Mankato Twin Cities Engineering Bachelor of Science program, as recently added to the Saint Paul College campus (MinnPoly Institute Takes New Approach to Higher Education). He is happy to continue his B.S. education on the Saint Paul College campus and wants all students to know that "math is NOT as difficult as many think," and he loves to live his life with the motto of "Live Long and Prosper!"

You can learn more about the Math Club and other related groups at SPC Student Organizations.