WORCESTER—Quinsigamond Community College is celebrating a double win this month after its student math team claimed first place in two separate regional competitions. The team earned top honors in both the New England Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges (NEMATYC) Student Math League and the Northeast Region of the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges (AMATYC) Student Math League.
The math team’s achievements earned them the Lois A. Martin Student Math League Award, distinguishing QCC as the highest-ranking institution in all of New England. They also secured the top spot across the entire Northeast region of AMATYC, which includes colleges from multiple states.
The competitions tested students with a series of challenging mathematical problems designed to assess both skill and strategy. The team was guided by Professor of Mathematics Ibar Delacruz, who served as the group’s moderator.
“This incredible win reflects the exceptional talent of our students and the dedication of our faculty,” the college said in its announcement of the awards.
The team’s standout students include Ben Carpenter, Isabel Thies, Quoc Le, and Vijay Kesavan—all of whom have been accepted to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for the fall semester.
Carpenter, who came to QCC with a background in IT, said the college’s math program helped reinforce his interest in cybersecurity. He credits faculty encouragement for his journey from student to peer tutor, creating what he describes as a “ripple effect” of students helping one another succeed.
Thies, once unsure about her academic direction, said she “found a math community” at QCC that inspired her to pursue a future in scientific research. Le and Kesavan expressed similar enthusiasm about the camaraderie they found among peers, with Kesavan noting the rigor of QCC’s coursework compared favorably to materials from institutions like MIT.
While the wins are a point of pride for the college, they also signal something more lasting: a supportive academic environment where students find not only success—but belonging.
For more about QCC’s mathematics programs and student achievements, visit www.qcc.edu.
Have news, tips, or a story worth telling? Reach Editor Charlene Arsenault at carsenault@theworcesterguardian.org—because good stories (and great scoops) deserve to be shared.
