Melanie Brown
Program Director
Biography
Dr. Melanie Brown is an Associate Professor of Mathematics and has been teaching at Champlain College since 2013. She is also the Program Director for Mathematics and oversees not only the major in Applied Mathematics and the minor in Mathematics, but also the collection of math courses that meet the needs of each of Champlain’s majors. Originally from Atlanta, GA, she graduated from Converse University with both a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education. She then pursued graduate studies in mathematics, earning a Master of Arts in Mathematics from Western Michigan University and a Ph.D. in Mathematical Sciences from the University of Vermont.
While her earliest research interests were in topological graph theory and combinatorial design theory, teaching at Champlain has given her the opportunity to explore applications of mathematics across a variety of disciplines. She is now especially interested in the mathematics of cybersecurity and regularly teaches a course in the mathematics of Cryptography. She also teaches more traditional math courses like Calculus I, Calculus II, and Linear Algebra, but she enjoys infusing each course with examples that demonstrate how the theoretical ideas help solve problems in “the real world.”
In addition to her teaching and administrative roles, Dr. Brown serves her faculty colleagues as the Chair of the Faculty Senate Welfare Committee. She is also a champion for gender diversity in STEAM and advises Champlain’s Womxn in Technology Club and Champlain’s Women in Cybersecurity Student Chapter. Additionally, she is a facilitator with the Champ 101 program.
In her free time, Dr. Brown is an active musician and plays clarinet with several Burlington-area ensembles.
Professional & Scholastic Affiliations
- Mathematical Association of America
- Women in Cybersecurity
