Ross Mathematics Program

The Ross Mathematics Program is a non-profit summer mathematics program for pre-college students, founded by Professor Arnold Ross in 1957. It is managed by the Ross Mathematics Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation created in 2018 to handle the financial and operational side of the program. The program has run every summer since it began, making it one of the longest continuously operating summer mathematics programs for high school students. Its stated goal is to instruct young students in the art of mathematical thinking and to inspire them to discover for themselves that abstract ideas are valuable and important. The guiding motto, Think deeply about simple things, reflects a teaching philosophy built on sustained exploration of a single subject rather than brief surveys of many topics. The organization holds that the value of a mathematics education lies not only in computational proficiency but also in building a foundation for critical thinking and informed citizenship. The organization runs a six-week residential summer session built around a first-year number theory course, daily problem sets, and small counselor-led family groups. It also runs a counselor programme that recruits undergraduate mathematics majors and mathematics graduate students as paid teaching staff, and a separately operated sibling session, Ross/Asia, established in 2016 in cooperation with Renascentia Hall International. Funding comes from student fees, donor gifts and endowment income, with support from partner organisations.