Education

  • Ph.D. University of Colorado, Boulder
  • M.S., B.S. Western Michigan University

Areas of Expertise

  • Data Analytics
  • Sports Analytics, Ranking
  • Numerical Linear Algebra

Background

I'm an applied mathematician with a focus in computer science, and I frequently work in data analytics with a specialty in sports analytics. I've worked with teams in the NBA, NFL and NASCAR, as well as, fielding questions from ESPN and The New York Times.  I also direct and work with a team of as many as 100 student researchers to provide analytics to Davidson College sports teams.

In addition to my teaching and research, I coauthored Numerical Methods: Design, Analysis, and Computer Implementation of Algorithms with Anne Greenbaum and authored Math Bytes: Google Bombs, Chocolate-Covered Pi, and Other Cool Bits in Computing, which received the Euler Book Prize from the Mathematical Association of America. Both books were published by Princeton University Press. I also authored When Life is Linear: From Computer Graphics to Bracketology, published by the Mathematical Association of America, which won the Beckenbach Book Prize as a distinguished, innovative book. I recently authored the book X Games in Mathematics: Sports Training That Counts, which explores how sports analytics explores a wide array of mathematical fields. It was also an honor to receive the Mathematical Association of America’s Daniel Solow Author’s Award, which recognizes an author of undergraduate mathematics teaching materials with the primary criteria for selection being the material’s impact on undergraduate education in mathematics and/or the mathematical sciences.

I am a recipient of a national teaching award from the Mathematical Association of America. I also received the 2021 Distinguished Teaching Award from the Southeastern Section of the Mathematical Association of America. In addition to teaching at the college level, I have worked with Google and Pixar on their K-12 educational initiatives.

I also received an Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship for my research, and have served as an expert resource for a variety of media inquiries, including appearances with Bloomberg TV, NPR, the CBS Evening News, USA Today, and The New York Times.

I also serve as Chair of the Congress and previously as Vice President of the Mathematical Association of America. I previously served as the first chair of the Advisory Council for the National Museum of Mathematics and continue as a member of the council.

Bracketology

A lot of sports tournament matchups are determined through brackets. Chartier teaches students how to create mathematical formulas/models to predict winners using bracketology and ranking, a system that has applications in many other fields.