EDMOND —
This morning, Frank Wang, Ph.D., new president of the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics, will welcome students and shake their hands outside the Manning Academic Center during the first day of school. Wang succeeds the founding president Dr. Edna Manning, who retired recently.
Wang’s path to OSSM has been an unusual one. As a child growing up in New York, he was diagnosed as having an impairment based upon tests that revealed “minimal suggestive neurological signs.” However, Wang defied the experts who told his parents that he did not have academic potential by eventually earning a doctorate in pure math from MIT.
When his parents moved to Oklahoma in 1980, Wang was a 16-year-old student at Norman High School. There he met retired Air Force test pilot and West Point graduate John Saxon. Saxon taught at a junior college and was seeking student help in writing a manuscript for an algebra textbook.
Saxon could not find a publisher for his book and as a result founded Saxon Publishers Inc., a textbook publishing company in Oklahoma. He tapped Wang to run the daily operations of the company after Wang received his Ph.D. in 1991. Saxon passed away in 1996, but Wang continued growing the company into a major publisher with 250 employees and annual sales approaching $100 million.
In 2003, Wang stepped down from his position as chairman of Saxon Publishers to pursue his lifelong passion and desire to teach, and approached Manning about teaching at OSSM. Though she welcomed Wang, she also told him that there were no available funds to pay him, so he taught for free. After teaching three years, Wang moved to Dallas, Texas, to start his own educational consulting company. When Manning decided to retire as president of OSSM, she approached Wang about applying for the position. He did and in August, Wang officially became only the second president in the school’s 22-year history.
The Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics is a two-year public residential high school created and funded by the Oklahoma legislature. The school is open to all students across the state who wish to apply during their sophomore year. Room and board are provided by the state.
Local News
Related Photos
-
PHOTO PROVIDED Anna Zhao, a recent OSSM graduate from Edmond, stands with Frank Wang, Ph.D., the new president of the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics. They are standing next to the map of Oklahoma showing the counties OSSM students are from. OSSM has admitted students from all 77 counties.
Discussion
OSSM welcomes new president
- Local News
-
-
Covell/I-35 work on track
The hotel and conference center project on Interstate 35 is very much on track, said John Weeman of Partners In Development told The Edmond Sun on Tuesday. Weeman is in the process of selecting one of three people for a construction partner, he said.
-
2 officers suffer injuries in drug-related pursuit
Two police officers suffered injuries during a call in which suspects fled in a vehicle and possessed meth, police said.
-
City Council approves church remodel
A request by Redeemed Christian Church of God Kingdom Chapel to remodel a facility at 307 E. Danforth for a church was approved recently by the City Council.
“The church wants to rent a 2,302-square-foot space in the office building on the north side of Danforth, east of the convenience store, south of the Timber Ridge Addition,” said Bob Schiermeyer, city planner. “There will be no new construction other than interior remodeling to accommodate the church.
The church does not request changes to the one driveway or sidewalk of the property, Schiermeyer said. No changes will be made to the outside of the two-story brick veneer building. A sprinkler system will not be required. -
Arcadia Lake nears reopening for summer season
Work on reclaiming Arcadia Lake has been ongoing since high water forced its closure earlier this month.
-
Professor: Constitutional heritage can bring sense of belonging to U.S. citizens
Education is fundamental in preparing a citizenry to live under a free constitutional republic, said Kyle Harper, founding director of the Institute for the American Constitutional Heritage at the University of Oklahoma. Harper is also the senior vice provost at OU as well as an associate professor of Classics and Letters.
A sense of identity by belonging to a tradition is an ingredient in being part of a free republic, he said while speaking to the Edmond Republican Women’s Club on Monday. An educated citizen must be aware, alert and intelligent to care about public affairs, he said. -
Red Cross seeks volunteers to aid in Moore storm recovery
Before arriving in Oklahoma last year, Edmond resident Sofia Griffith already had a growing Red Cross volunteer résumé.
-
DA files formal charge in Craigslist sex case
Prosecutors have filed a formal felony charge against an Edmond man arrested on a complaint related to the alleged solicitation of a minor via Craigslist, according to court records.
Friday afternoon, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Jessica Brown said a member of the OSBI Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force arrested the man that morning after a two-month-long investigation into solicitation for sex with minors via Craigslist. -
Oreo stacking contest slated for Crest Foods in Edmond
Crest Foods is calling all stackers, ages 6-11, to visit the Edmond store from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday to try their hand at an Oreo stacking event. The store, 2200 W. 15th St., is one of several Crest sites where youth can attempt to stack Oreos. The team that builds the highest stack in 30 seconds qualifies for the finals round the following weekend, said Donna Kamas, public relations manager.
-
State photo-ID databases become troves for police
The faces of more than 120 million people are in searchable photo databases that state officials assembled to prevent driver's-license fraud but that increasingly are used by police to identify suspects, accomplices and even innocent bystanders in a wide range of criminal investigations.
-
Lucas: Farm Bill approval vital for state farmers
The U.S. House will approve a farm bill this year, Rep. Frank Lucas said Saturday.
The bill will be debated on the House floor Wednesday and Thursday and will pass after 30 to 60 amendments are considered. - More Local News Headlines
-
Rihanna Hits Fan With Microphone During UK Concert
Obama Renews Call for Nuclear Reductions
Miami Heat Wins in Overtime
Raw: Arizona Wildfire Scorches 8 Square Miles
Fists, chairs fly in restaurant brawl
Journalist Michael Hastings Dies in Fiery Hollywood Crash
Hairy Leg Stockings Aim to Deflect Male Attention
Inside Kim Kardashian's Premature Labor
Three Charged for Enslaving Mother and Daughter
Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park
Spurs' Popovich has no problem with Spurs' intensity
RAW: NSA Director Says 50 Plots Foiled
Paige Butcher Scorches on Hawaii Beach
Video: worst way to load cargo onto a plane
Never-before-seen footage of '08 Times Square bomber
Obama: NSA Secret Data Gathering 'Transparent'
WATCH IT: Lil Wayne tramples American flag
Mariah Carey Looks Beautiful in a Tiny Cut-Out Swimsuit
Out of Control Boat Throws Passengers Overboard
See Lindsay Lohan in Rehab
