The institutional mission and culture of the FRMMI are designed to emulate the socially responsible attitudes and humanism of the late mathematician, Dr. Frank Ragland, the Institute’s namesake, who was born in Montgomery Alabama in 1941. Frank, the grandson of slaves, was the fifth child of Eddie Ragland, Sr. a railroad mail clerk, and Arcola Ragland. The larger portion of Dr. Ragland’s life was spent in an era when racial discrimination of the worst sort was the daily experience of African Americans.
Frank's view was that we needed to create and nurture communities that supported our aspirations and his life was a testament to this philosophy. Frank Ragland succeeded against all odds. His lifelong interest in academia began as a student at Council Elementary School and A.H Parker High School. In 1954, after graduating, Frank left Birmingham, Alabama to study and work in Chicago, Illinois. He managed to work his way through DePauw University where he majored in chemistry. In 1961 he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in the Humanities; majoring in French, German, and the related Literatures from Loyola University (Chicago). In 1970, Frank earned a Master of Science degree in Mathematics at Chicago State University with a concentration in complex variable theory and classical differential geometry. In April 1967, while teaching mathematics at Parker High School in Chicago, Frank was lauded by former students for inspiring them to excellence in academics. Their admiration for him was expressed in the TIME Magazine article Universities: Courting the Negro.
Frank was a true Renaissance man. He spoke fluent Dutch, French, German, Latin, Russian, and Spanish. In 1991, he contributed his language expertise to translate AUGUSTIN-LOUIS CAUCHY: A BIOGRAPHY (French to English). Further, he published and edited a number of related encyclopedia entries while consulting for Arete’ Publishing (Amsterdam).
While teaching at several schools throughout Illinois and New York, Frank enhanced his propensity for understanding the rigors of advanced mathematics and earned his PhD in 1992 from New York University’s Polytechnic Institute. His dissertation was ON THE GENERAL PROBLEM OF ZENODOROUS.
Frank, was a fierce proponent of community centered knowledge-based instruction and a highly respected Professor of Mathematics at Medgar Evers College. He guided many students through their challenges in mathematics and helped to nurture and develop their technical expertise. Today they contribute their talents to various industrial firms and universities throughout the United States. Dr. Ragland was a co-author of the curriculum for the Bachelor’s degree in Mathematical Sciences at Medgar Evers College. He believed in education in service to community and research based mentoring. His legacy lives in his students and this initiative was named in his honor after his death in February of 2012.
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