It all adds up: Indiana University East ranks among the top universities in the country for online math programs.

In fact, it is ranked in fourth place for bachelor’s degree programs, according to data compiled by Learn.org.

That positive news was released last month by the national organization that boasts it receives half a million visitors each month to its website. Learn.org reports it is dedicated to saving students time and money.

According to Learn.org the school ranking methodology categorizes and assesses data from schools and other reliable sources, such as the U.S. Department of Education, and weighs the information based on quality, cost, value and other factors critical to students’ academic decisions. All table data is provided by the National Center for Education Statistics.

The achievement and notoriety are certainly welcome, but not necessarily surprising, thinks Markus Pomper, department chair and associate professor of mathematics.

IU East has enjoyed phenomenal growth with its online math program since 2009. “We had nine then and now we have 350,” he said. “There is a huge demand for it.”

That demand, of course, includes local students from Richmond, eastern Indiana and western Ohio.

But the program’s popularity extends well beyond the local area, and enrolls students from all over the nation, and even includes some international students.

“Our students come from all walks of life”, Pomper said. “They could be anywhere in the world, and at any stage in their career.” One current bachelor’s degree student is already a highly successful professional, but wants to advance further in the world of finance. Another student who is about to graduate from the program is a 16-year-old in Colorado.

Another recent graduate is a man who grew up on the Navajo reservation in Arizona, and is the first in his family to have earned a college degree.

“We also have many active military personnel,” said Pomper. The program is very flexible, and some students take only one or two classes at a time. He cited examples of active military students who were deployed in Afghanistan, and others who serve stateside, all the while taking online math classes at IU East.

The wide-ranging appeal helps bring a much-desired diversity of students.

No matter where they are from, the online students get attentive instructors.

“We have a very engaged faculty. They make sure they interact with the students,” Pomper said, who teaches three courses himself. “From first inquiry to graduation, there is always someone there to answer questions.”

Besides the personal touch, there are a multitude of reasons for students to choose IU East’s online program. In one timely way, students can take classes while staying home, which is particularly relevant as so many are forced to restructure their lives due to the coronavirus. It’s an opportunity for the student who can only take classes overnight or during the summer or during a spare hour on a workday lunch.

“We offer a welcoming place for all those for whom the traditional way of attending college is not an option. We can fill that void,” Pomper said.

Pomper is prepared to add additional online math classes in the summer to allow students whose face-to-face summer classes were cancelled an opportunity to continue working toward their degrees.

Pomper earned his doctorate in Mathematics at the University of Illinois. Indiana University East was his first academic appointment, which he held until 2014. He served as dean at a community college in Tennessee for five years before returning to Richmond in fall 2019.

IU East created the online math program in 2009 under Pomper’s leadership. “We knew there was is demand for math programs nationwide,” he said. “But we had not dreamed of the program earning national recognition.”

IU East’s program tries to make sure that there are constant interactions between instructors and students and also students with each other.

Students can choose when they do their work, but they have projects, discussions and regular deadlines. “We allow students to choose the times when they wish to work on their studies, but we also want to make sure that every one stays on task, that each class progresses as a cohort, and that there is a sense of community in each class,” Pomper said.

IU East has seven faculty in its math department, four with doctoral degrees and three with master’s.

Universities can’t quickly replicate what IU East has done for a decade.

For one, it’s not easy for many instructors to transition from traditional face-to-face classroom teaching to online instruction.

“I think it’s very hard to enter this field at this point,” Pomper said. “You have to build the capacity to offer classes online. That is something that takes time. We are ahead of the curve when it comes to that.”

IU East offers online bachelor degrees in more than a dozen areas. They are Applied Health Science; English, Technical and Professional Writing; Natural Science and Mathematics, with a Mathematics Concentration; Communication Studies; Business Administration; Criminal Justice; Informatics; Political Science; Psychology; Mathematics; General Studies; and an R.N. to B.S.N. Mobility Option.

IU East also offers Graduate Certificates in Composition Studies, Early Childhood Education and Mathematics.

For more information about IU East’s online degree completion programs, visit iue.edu/online.