Professor Matthew Whitehead
Years at the college: 2010 - 2022
B.A. Mathematics, Willamette University 2001
M.S. Computer Science, Washington State University 2003
P.h.D. Computer Science, Indiana University 2010
When Jonathan Bredin left the college, Matthew Whitehead was hired in a visiting position to fill the vacancy. After a few years, he was offered a tenure-track position. He was the second Ph.D. in computer science to join the department and brought with him not only a liberal arts background, but an undergraduate background in mathematics, an expertise in artificial intelligence, and a particular interest in hardware. Soon he added mobile computing and machine learning courses to the developing computer science curriculum. Together with Steven Janke, he re-energized the robotic program which started being offered as an extended format course.
Whitehead's quiet, inviting manor probably was one factor driving the increasing enrollment in computer science which started around the year he arrived and grew nearly exponentially. He attracted students to his research into deep learning and boosted their credentials as they pursued careers in computing fields. He was active during this time in revising the curriculum to cope with growing enrollments and to improve an increasingly popular major.