Robert Mayne
Robert Mayne
Fellowship Placement: U.S. Department of Defense
Hometown: North Stonington, Connecticut
Robert Mayne (North Stonington, Connecticut) is a veteran mathematics educator at Chariho Regional High School in Wood River Junction, Rhode Island. Over 29 years in the classroom, he has taught grades 9–12 across all math courses, most recently, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Intro to Statistics, and AP Statistics. Since 2020 he has served as Mathematics Department Chair, leading curriculum work, mentoring colleagues, and using data to improve student outcomes. He earned a B.A. in Mathematics from the University of Rhode Island and is completing an M.S. in Applied Statistics at Penn State.
Robert works closely with the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE). In 2025 he served as a Secondary Math Ambassador for the Rhode Island Math Collaborative. In this role, he provides feedback and guidance on statewide conversations to restructure high school mathematics courses and update graduation requirements, helping coordinate input from teachers, district leaders, higher education, and community partners.
In 2022 and 2023, he participated in the NSF-supported Research Experience for STEM Teachers at Penn State’s Architectural Engineering Department. His work examined how experts interpret structural conditions during inspections and disaster assessments—using tools such as eye tracking to study real-time decision-making. That experience led to two peer-reviewed papers: one in Nature Scientific Reports on how inspectors’ gaze patterns inform sense-making during façade inspections, and a follow-up study in Buildings that looks at expert knowledge in tornado damage assessment.
Robert is a 2019 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) awardee and the 2025 recipient of the Amedeo DeRobbio Memorial Award from the Rhode Island Mathematics Teachers Association. He has presented at NCTM and regional conferences on flipped and blended learning as well as authentic research experiences in secondary classrooms. His teaching philosophy is student-centered and equity-minded: he designs differentiated, blended environments that build confidence, independence, and data-literate problem solving. Motivated by seeing students tackle mathematics they once thought was out of reach, he also contributes to STEM policy and practice through service on state advisory panels and curriculum task forces, collaboration with RIDE and higher education, and engagement with stakeholders at the local and state levels.
