Mary Connolly
Mary Connolly has made an impact and continues to impact many math majors that have gone to Saint Mary's with her time and talent. She blends her love of teaching with practical real world analysis and critical thinking.
Her Story
She has guided many students to get a math degree or a math minor on many occasions, including me!
I went into Saint Mary's as a business major and by my sophomore year, she had convinced me to major in math instead. My dad and I still recall our first encounter with Professor Connolly at orientation the summer before I started at Saint Mary's. We met her at the open house for the various academic departments. We stood there and talked with her for twenty minutes and by the end of it, she told my dad that I would be a math major, and to just wait!
She not only introduced me to the value of a math degree and education, but to the concept of computer science and writing code. I would not be in the job I have today, working on analytics and reporting, had I not taken computer science 207 (Java at the time) and eventually earned a computational math degree. She challenges all of her students to absorb the material she teaches and to accomplish goals they never thought they could. She almost always had/has her door open to students with questions, unselfishly giving her time. She even "retired" in 2012 but still teaches at least one class a semester! Mary Connolly truly is a women worth celebrating for the 175th anniversary Celebration!