Camillia Smith Barnes

Biography

"Camillia Smith Barnes is an Associate Professor of Mathematics here at USAO. Originally of East Lansing, Michigan, Dr. Barnes fell in love with math at an early age, thanks to the encouragement of her father, a physicist. She also grew fond of literature, however, and had difficulty deciding whether to study math, English, or French in college. So she majored in all three, graduating from Michigan State University with a bachelor’s degree in each. She then studied math at Cambridge University on a Churchill Scholarship, after which she completed her doctorate in math at Harvard. Dr. Barnes came to USAO’s math department via Sweet Briar College in Virginia, where she taught for six years before SBC announced its expected closure in 2015. While sad to have left Sweet Briar (which was able to remain open at nearly the last minute thanks to the tremendous efforts of its alumnae, employees, and friends), Dr. Barnes has enjoyed the new challenge of teaching at USAO. In her spare time, Dr. Barnes is fond of reading, knitting, solving logic puzzles, writing computer programs, and playing with her cats (who are all named after famous mathematicians)."

Research Interest

Calculus & Analytic Geometry, Trigonometry, Linear Algebra, Basic Algebra Skills