Title: Celebrate National Hispanic Month: Five Hispanic and Latino Mathematicians
Headings: Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month: Five Hispanic and Latino Mathematicians
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Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month: Five Hispanic and Latino Mathematicians
Pay tribute to great Latino and Hispanic mathematicians in history
Pay tribute to great Latino and Hispanic mathematicians in history
1. Jaime Escalante (1930-2010)
2. Ruth Gonzalez (Present)
3. Alberto Pedro Calderón (1920-1998)
4. Ruy Luís Gomes (1905-1984)
5. Júlio César de Mello e Souza (1895-1974)

Content: Jaime Escalante (1930-2010)
Photo: David Butow/Corbis via Getty Images
Jaime Escalante was a math educator from Bolivia. He immigrated to the United States in the 1960s. In 1974, he accepted a job as a math teacher at Garfield High School in East Los Angeles. The student population was predominantly Hispanic and low-income. It was a challenging place to teach, with a history of violence and academic underperformance. Escalante wanted to see his students succeed and started an advanced mathematics program. Eventually, his program grew. In 1982, his largest class took and passed the AP Calculus test. Because so many of his students had passed, the testing company suspected cheating and invalidated their scores.