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November 30, 2007 > News > Jones named Texas Professor of the Year

Jones named Texas Professor of the Year

By Hajera Blagg | For the Thresher

As a mathematics professor at Rice for 46-years, Frank Jones (Wiess ‘58) has taught and inspired thousands of students. So it is no surprise that, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching honored Jones with the prestigious Texas Professor of the Year Award last week.

The Carnegie Foundation annually bestows the award to a professor from each state who, according to the program’s Web site, “excels in teaching and positively influences the lives and careers of students.” Jones was chosen from over 300 nominees in the entire country from every field of study at a wide range of universities across the nation.

Sid Richardson College junior Preston Smith said Jones was one of the most approachable teachers at Rice.

“Whenever I had questions about homework or anything, I just had to knock on his door and come in,” Smith, a former student who took Jones’ Honors Calculus IV class last semester, said. “The only time he couldn’t help me was when he was busy helping someone else.”

Smith also said Jones reaches out to students even in non-academic matters.

“Last semester, I played tennis with him, and he was the one who asked me to play,” Smith said.

Math Department Chair Michael Wolf said he was everyone’s favorite professor.

“When I once emailed [Jones’] former students for recommendations for a different award, I received responses within minutes,” Wolf said. “And these were students from every decade that he taught.”

Wolf also said Jones was enthusiastic in helping everybody learn, whether they be undergraduates or high school students or people in the community who simply want to know more about math.

During the summer, Jones works with undergraduates in a scholarship program helping them solve new problems in math.

“He learns along with them,” Wolf said. “I also know that he has been helping a community businessman, who is an amateur mathematician, prove a difficult theorem.”

Jones said he was thrilled and humbled to receive the award, but that the most rewarding experience is in the teaching.

“I love the students, and I love the subject,” said Jones. “It amazes me every year to see my students achieve and progress so much within a single semester. That is why I teach.”

Outside of the classroom, Jones is an involved both with his church and his family. Jones calls himself an enthusiastic student of the Bible, and he teaches a Bible course at a local church.

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