Ted had an impact on many parts of the curriculum at Grand Valley, serving on the University General Education Committee for over 10 years, and helping redesign the general education program in 1998. In our department, he led the redesign of the mathematics major in 1998. Ted was the first mathematics faculty member to use calculators in his mathematics courses, and he was closely involved in the development of the use of technology in the mathematics curriculum. Ted is a coauthor of the book Exploring Calculus with a Graphing Calculator (with Char Beckmann), an early resource for teachers to help them adopt technology in their teaching.

 

One of Ted's lasting legacies is the development of textbooks. He is the author of Mathematical Reasoning: Writing and Proof, which has been used for our Communicating in Mathematics (MTH 210) course for over 20 years. Mathematical Reasoning: Writing and Proof was originally published by Pearson Education, Inc. Ted reclaimed the copyright, and the book is now available as an open educational resource, one of the first in our department. Mathematical Reasoning: Writing and Proof has been adopted by over 100 other colleges and universities. For this book, Ted was the inaugural recipient of the Daniel Solow Author’s Award from the Mathematical Association of America in 2017.  He is also the coauthor of two other books that have been used at Grand Valley:  Trigonometry (with Steve Schlicker), and Abstract Algebra: An Inquiry-Based Approach (with Jon Hodge and Steve Schlicker).

 

In April, 2005, Ted was recognized by the Michigan Section of the Mathematical Association of America with its Award for Distinguished Teaching of College or University Mathematics.

 

Ted and his wife Karen enjoy spending time in Colorado visiting their daughter. He enjoys golf and bicycling and is an avid photographer. Some of his photos can be seen at www.tedsundstrom.com/photographs.