Ian Walton

Ian began working as a full-time math instructor at Mission College in 1978, following a year of part-time teaching at University of California, Santa Cruz and at Monterey Peninsula College.  At that time Mission College was located at the interim site on Monroe St., Santa Clara.

Ian was Mission College College Academic Senate President from 1990 to 1994 and again from 1997-98. (M.C. Senate web page.)

In 2007 he completed a two year term as President of the state level Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC), after serving as Vice President for two years and Treasurer for three years.

   |

              
Ian with ASCCC Past President Hoke Simpson (02-03)     |     Ian with ASCCC Past President Kate Clark (04-05)
Ian with successor ASCCC Presidents Mark Wade Lieu (08-09) and Jane Patton (10-11), also of Mission College, taken in April 2010

Ian has a B.S. in Pure Mathematics from the University of St. Andrews which he attended from 1969 until 1973. St. Andrews University was founded in 1410 as the first university in Scotland. One of his favorite web pages is a Math History Archive, created by two of his former professors at St. Andrews, at St. Andrews Math History. Ian was President of the St. Andrews University Mountaineering Club and a member of the 1971 university climbing expedition to South Greenland.

In 1973 he received a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the University of California at Santa Cruz. He received a Masters degree in Mathematics in 1975 and a Ph.D. in 1977 for research in Differential Equations.  For three years he supervised an undergraduate dormitory at Crown College and considers this the best training he received for his later career as a senate president.

At Mission College, Ian was chair of the math department/division for many years and President of the Mission College Academic Senate from 1990 to 1994 and 1997-98.

He is also a former budget analyst, newsletter editor, negotiator and webmaster for the faculty union, ACE.

After being local senate president he taught a regular load for three years and was then involved in a Title III project to investigate new methods of delivery for our algebra curriculum. This resulted in the use of new technology mediated learning software produced by local startup company Academic Systems of Mountain View.  Ian was a contract scriptwriter for the Academic Systems material.

For more information on Academic Systems (now Plato) and mediated learning, check out their Academic Net Website

In Fall 1996 Ian began to work for the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges by serving on their statewide Educational Policies Committee . In Fall 97 he was elected to the fifteen member Executive Committee of the State Academic Senate as representative for Area B (the San Francisco bay region). From 98 to 01 he was chair of the Academic Senate Technology Committee and helped to publish a series of position papers on technology in education. In 01 - 02 he was chair of the Senate's Occupational Education Committee and in 02 - 03 he chaired the Local Senates Committee.

In April 2002 he was re-elected for a third term as Treasurer, one of the five officers of the Academic Senate. He also chaired the Senate's Budget Committee and served as liaison to many of the Chancellor's Office technology and workforce advisory committees, and to the Intersegmental Committee of Academic Senates (ICAS) of the three higher education systems in California. He is also a Senate appointee to the mathematics editorial review board of the MERLOT project.

In May 2003 he was elected as Vice President and served two years while also chairing the Educational Policies Committee.

He served as President of the Academic Senate for 2005 - 2007. Issues of particular interest included revising the math and English competency requirements for an associate degree and the resultant systemwide Basic Skills Initiative.  He also assisted Executive Director Julie Adams in the creation of the new Student Senate for California Community Colleges (SSCCC).

As past president he has continued with committee work for the Academic Senate, chairing their Educational Policies Committee in 07 - 08 and their Noncredit Committee in 08 - 09.  In 09 - 10 Ian worked on several grant projects supported by the Hewlett Foundation, The Academic Senate and the Research & Planning Group.  In 10-11 Ian joined the Achieve group in Washington DC to advise on a rewrite of the GED math test, and visited Deep Springs College as one of an accreditation visiting team. 

To find a selection of adopted Senate position papers and Rostrum articles that include Ian's work, go to the ASCCC website.

In 1988 Ian received the Mission College Faculty Member of the Year Award - selected by Mission College students.

In 1990 he received the Mission College Award for Excellence in Teaching.

In May 1996 he was selected by the Santa Clara Valley Mathematics Association as their college level Outstanding Mathematics Teacher of the year.

In Fall 1997 he received a "Courageous Leadership" Award from the Community College League of California.

In 1993 he received the Mission College Award for  Publishing Excellence.

In 1997 and 2002 he received the Mission College Award for Service to the Community.

In August 2005, he was named Teacher of the Week by the San Jose Mercury NewsIn September 2006 he received the California Community College Excellence in Technology Leadership Award in a ceremony at the September Board of Governors meeting in Sacramento.

  Other Presentations