urn:taro:utexas.cah.01362 A Guide to the George Lenchner Papers, 1943-2006 Original EAD encoding by Beth Nettels according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. Nov. 10, 2009 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Lenchner (George) Lenchner (George) Papers 1943-2006 Materials are written in English. 2008-259 6 ft. Dolph Briscoe Center for American History,The University of Texas at Austin George Lenchner founded the Math Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools (MOEMS) in 1978. Correspondence, lectures, notes, and publications document George Lenchner's career as a teacher and administrator in the Valley Stream Central School District (1953-1983). Biographical Note

George Lenchner (1917-2006) was born in Hartford, Connecticut, and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He was interested in mathematics early in his life, and was a member of the math team at Boys High School (Brooklyn, NY) in the early 1930s. In 1939, Lenchner received his bachelor's degree from the City College of New York.

During WWII he served in the Army as an Airborne Ranger (with the rank of lieutenant), and in 1944, he was wounded on Omaha Beach during the D-day landing operations. He was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. Following his service in the Army, he received his master's degree in music from New York University in 1948.

Lenchner began teaching high school mathematics in 1950 when he joined the faculty at New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn. In 1953, he took a job at Valley Stream North High School (Long Island, NY) as its math chairman. In 1954, he proposed the creation of the Nassau County (NY) Interscholastic Mathematics League (NCIML) for high school students. By 1955, the NCIML was fully operational, with Lenchner serving as its leader. Also around this time, he formed the Nassau County Association of Math Supervisors, and he proposed the formation of the Nassau County Junior High School Mathematics League, which held its first meet in 1960. In addition, Lenchner helped Alfred Kalfus form the Suffolk County Interscholastic Mathematics League.

In 1965, he earned a master's degree in mathematics from Adelphi University. He became Director of Mathematics for the Valley Stream Central School District in 1970. In 1972, Lenchner received his Ed.D. in Mathematics Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. He created the Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools (MOEMS) for the Valley Stream elementary schools in 1978. Lenchner retired from the Valley Stream school system in 1983 in order to focus fully on MOEMS. He retired from MOEMS in 1995.

Lenchner authored numerous publications, including (with Judy Broadwin) a solutions manual for the Advanced Placement examinations in calculus, and two volumes of Math Olympiad problems. His in-service course, The Art of Problem Solving in School Mathematics , was published by Houghton Mifflin in 1983, with the title Creative Problem Solving in School Mathematics. Examples of his honors and awards include being named a National Science Foundation Fellow, the Mathematics Teacher of the Year Award from the New York State Society of Professional Engineers, and the Distinguished Secondary School Teaching Award from Harvard University.

 Scope and Contents

Correspondence, lectures, notes, and publications document George Lenchner’s career as a teacher and administrator in the Valley Stream Central School District (1953-1983). The publication process for several of Lenchner’s published works is particularly well documented in drafts and correspondence with his son, David. Correspondence, notes, drafts, and printed materials illuminate Lenchner’s work as founder and later executive officer of Math Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools.

Forms part of the Archives of American Mathematics.

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 Index Terms Subjects (Persons) Lenchner, George Subjects (Organizations) Association of Mathematics Teachers of New York State Math Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Subjects Advanced placement programs (Education) Calculus Education Mathematics Mathematics—Competitions—United States Mathematics—Problems, exercises, etc. Mathematics—Study and teaching Overhead projection Preferred Citation

George Lenchner Papers, 1943-2006, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.

 Detailed Description of the Papers I. Mathematical Olympiads 2008-259/1 (10612976) Nassau County Interscholastic Mathematics League (NCIML) NCIML contests, 1957-1972, undated Mathlete clippings and articles, 1962, undated Problems and Solutions Guide, July 6, 1969 Publicity, 1972-2005 Problems and Solutions Guide order form, 1977, 1989 Correspondence, 1997-1998 New York City Interscholastic Mathematics League Contests, 1977-1980 Mathlete practice contests, undated North High Mathletes practice handouts, undated Theorems of geometry for Mathletes, undated “My Favorite Mathlete Problems,” undated 2008-259/1 (10612976) Long Island Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary Students (LIMOES) Olympiad overheads, [1978]-1980 Drafts, lecture notes, forms, 1981, undated Lecture handouts and overheads, [198-?] Correspondence, October, 5, 1981 LIMOES Pilot Year problems and solutions, 1998 2008-259/1 (10612976) Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools (MOEMS) Contests and solutions, 1981-1982, 1993-1996, 2004-2005 Correspondence, 1981-2000 Newsletters, 1981, 1994-2006 Presentations, 1982-1994, undated Notes, 1982, undated Clippings, 1982, 1994-1998, undated Promotional materials, 1983 Other mathematics contests, 1985-1989, undated Math Olympiad appeals, 1989 “My Twelve Favorite Math Olympiad Problems” originals, 1992? Kalman application for MOES Executive Director, 1993 Person in Charge of Olympiads presentation, 1998 Twentieth Anniversary Luncheon, 1999 George Lenchner Award biography, [200-?] Presentation notes, undated 2008-259/1 (10612976) Publications “Olympiads for Elementary Schools,” The Arithmetic Teacher, January 1985 Mathematical Olympiads for Children, 1988 Mathematical Olympiad Contest Problems for Children, 1990 Drafts (Folders 1-4 of 7), 1989-1996, undated Mathematical Olympiad Problems for Elementary and Middle Schools, 1996 2008-259/2 (10612954) Drafts (Folders 5-7 of 7), 1989-1996, undated Mathematical Olympiad Problems for Elementary and Middle Schools, 1996 Drafts on diskettes, [1994-1996] Annotations, undated Flyers for publications, undated Reviews, 1992, 1996-1997 Reproduction permission requests, 1996-2003, undated Correspondence with Random House, 1996 Glenwood Publications notes, 2003 Printed Materials Rothenberg, Richard. Problem Solving for Math Competitions, 1996 II. Teaching and Administration 2008-259/2 (10612976) Phi Mu Epsilon Interscholastic Mathematics Contest, 1960 Colgate Institute for A.P. Teachers correspondence, 1966 Elementary school math instruction observation log, 1967 Valley Stream School District newsletters, 1970-1972 Basic Computation Test report, 1971 Enrichment vs. Acceleration How-to Clinic, 1973-1974? Report on Cooperative Area Programs, Nassau County, 1976 Mathematics Education for Gifted Secondary Students, 1981 Art of Problem Solving lecture notes and visuals, 1982, [198-?] Valley Stream Schools Math Curriculum Supplements, 1982 “Student Achievement” report, 1983 Retirement announcements, 1983-1984 New York State mathematics curriculum for K-6, 1985 Problem Solving In-service notes, handouts, exams, 1986-1987 Problem Solving In-service term papers and evaluation, 1986 Problem Solving In-service student grades, RESTRICTED, 1986-1987 Problem Solving In-service instructor evaluations, 1986?-1987 “Ubiquitous Unit Fraction” notes, overheads, 1989, 1992, undated NSF Project grant proposal for In-service Institute, [198-?] “Greatest Common Factor” and “Least Common Multiple” overheads and masters, [199-?] “Art of Problem Solving” notes and overheads, undated “Directed Numbers” overheads and handouts, undated “Divisibility” overheads, undated Drafts of mathematical overhead visuals, undated 2008-259/3 (10612943) Euler and other famous mathematicians notes and overheads, undated “Five-Year Olds” overhead, undated Geometry overheads, masters, and notes, undated Grids overhead visuals, undated Lesson on one, lessons on primes and composites, undated Math Skills workshop notes and handouts, undated Polygons handout, undated Problem handouts, undated Problem solving overheads, undated “Solving ‘Algebra’ Problems in Elementary Schools” handouts, undated Transformations and reflections overheads, undated Kindergarten lesson on “Tal” with overheads, undated “Ugboo's Big Problem” overheads, undated Visuals of “Creative Problem Solving” problems, undated 2008-259/3 (10612943) Printed Materials Trig-Easy manuals, 1943, 1945 Mathematical theme visuals from Scripta Mathematica, 1948-1955, undated Famous mathematicians, 1964-1965, 1988-1989, undated Math and secondary schools “The Calculus of Finite Differences: Enrichment for Student and Teacher,” Professional Growth for Teachers, Mathematics, April 1965 Elements of Mathematics, Book O: Intuitive Background, 1973 Overhead projectors and education Krulik, Stephen and Irwin Kaufman. How to Use the Overhead Projector in Mathematics Education, 1966 “Summary of a Research Study Conducted by the New York City Board of Education on the Effectiveness of Overhead Projection in Two High School Classes,” 1966? Clippings, 1981-1984, undated Problem solving for elementary students Cohen, Sandra. Problem Solving for Primary Grades K-3, 1984 Semadeni, Zbigniew. “Verbal Problems in Arithmetic Teaching,” 1986 Puchalska, Ewa and Zbigniew Semadeni. “Children's Reactions to Verbal Arithmetical Problems with Missing, Surplus or Contradictory Data,” 1987 Jane and Johnny Love Math, 1992 Audio Material Interview with Dr. Bruce Vogeli re: Algebra textbooks (audio cassette tape), 1971 III. Publications and Creative Works 2008-259/3 (10612943) Calculus projectuals advertisements, 1964? Calculus- A Teacher's Guide for 42 Projectuals, 1965 Calculus overheads, 1965 First generation masters for Calculus overheads, 1965 “Algebra 1” and “Algebra 2” correspondence, 1969 Errata for A Visual Approach to Modern Algebra I, 1969 Dissertation overhead projection study kit, 1969? M2X=Mathematics Materials Exposition manuscript, 1970? 2008-259/4 (10612965) Dissertation- “A Study of the Effect of the Use of Overhead Projection on Achievement in Presenting Selected Topics of Circular Functions,” 1972 Dissertation abstract, 1972? Correspondence, 1973, 1975 Articles “Problem Number 10,” Mathematics Teacher, November 1974 “Notes on Inequalities in Secondary School Mathematics,” undated The Overhead Projector in the Mathematics Classroom, 1974 Calculus projectuals correspondence, 1977 “Number Models in Primary Grades Unifix Cubes,” 1977 Creative Problem Solving in Elementary and Middle School Mathematics, 1981 Problem sets, 1981? Manuscript for Ch. 10, 1981? Overheads, [198-?] Creative Problem Solving in School Mathematics, 1st Ed., 1983 Creative Problem Solving order forms and reviews, undated Creative Problem Solving in School Mathematics, 2nd Ed. Drafts (Folders 1-2 of 8), 1999-2004, undated 2008-259/5 (10612932) Drafts (Folders 3-8 of 8), 1999-2004 Printed Materials Figure It Out: Thinking Like a Math Problem Solver, Books 5-6, with Lenchner’s notes and critiques, [199-?] IV. Professional Activities 2008-259/5 (10612932) Curriculum Vitae, 1958-1981 Conference correspondence and programs, 1958-1993 Presentation materials- NCTM, AMTNYS, 1962-1966, undated Advanced Placement conference, notes, lecture, correspondence, 1964, undated Sitomer book reviews, 1970, 1976-1977 Journal referee materials, 1974-1975, undated Papers, newsletters and memos from professional organizations, 1976-1988 Nassau County Student Symposium in Mathematics, 1985, undated 2008-259/6 (10612921) International Congress on Mathematical Education, 1980-1988 Problem solving lecture notes, 1983-1986 “How-To Clinic” program, 1984 Sixth ICME abstract of poster presentations, 1988 “Math Matters” PTA kit, 1989 Syllabus for Framingham State College course, 1990 Long Island Mathematics Conference (LIMACON) notes, 1992 “New Technology in Math” project, 1996, undated “My Twelve Favorite Problems” overheads and lecture notes, [199-?] Loose notes, undated AMTNYS “World's Greatest Math Teacher” bumper stickers, undated V. Personal 2008-259/6 (10612921) Student work, graduate course materials, 1958 Experienced Teacher Fellowship correspondence, 1967 PTA scholarship, 1968-1970 Correspondence with former students, 1968-1984, undated Photo key overhead of 29th Dn. officers, undated VI. Photographs 2008-259/6 (10612921) Math class at Valley Stream North High School, undated VII. Digital Media 2008-259/6 (10612921) Unidentified 5 ¼ “ diskettes, undated Unidentified 3.5” diskettes, 1994-2002, undated “My Docs/Windows” Backup, January 23, 2002 “My Documents” CD-R, February 2, 2002