Mathematics Professor Jim DeFanza lived through one of the most tumultuous times in American history, surviving the tear gas, stray bullets and swinging billy-clubs at Kent State University on the morning of May 4, 1970.

He remembers barricading the door to his dorm room shortly after the National Guard opened fire on a group of protesters that had gathered at Kent State.  “Police with riot gear surrounded the building, threatening to come in and rip students out of the windows,” DeFranza recalls.  It was a moment he refers to as “life-changing.”

An undergraduate at the time, he had no idea that nearly 40 years later he would be a tenured professor of mathematics at St. Lawrence University.  DeFranza has celebrated his 25th year at St. Lawrence and plans to release his fourth textbook, titled Linear Algebra, in the fall.

DeFranza graduated from college in 1972, at the peak of the Vietnam War and a period of social instability in America.  Even though he works with numbers today, he still has a passion for politics that was forged during his college years. 

Upon receiving his Ph.D. from KSU in 1979, DeFranza landed a job at a large state school.  At the recommendation of a friend, he applied for a position at St. Lawrence, drawn by the smaller class size and beautiful surrounding area.  A typical class, he says, might have between 15 and 20 students. 

“Because of the smaller classes, I interact more with individual students, which means I understand their strengths and weaknesses better,” DeFranza explains.  “I actually know each student and have a much more personal connection with them.  It’s great to act as a mentor of sorts as they go on to other things.”