Math Professor Hamman Passes Away During Summer Break

August 20, 2010 — 3:33 p.m.

Math Professor Elizabeth Hamman passed away unexpectedly last month.

She had been recovering from a fall she had experienced in Yosemite where she twisted her knee and badly injured her ankle when she was hospitalized and was diagnosed with blood clots in her lungs. Despite receiving treatment, her condition worsened and she never recovered.

"Elizabeth will be remembered as a tireless worker and a true professional," her dean, Richard Fee, said. "Not a day went by that she was not thinking about her subject and how to improve her teaching presentation. She was our resident expert in instructional technology and was preparing to present at a national conference on the use of tablet PCs for mathematics instruction. Her loss will be felt greatly within the Math Department, the SEM Division and the College."

Students also had praise for Hamman.

"She was more than just my math teacher. She helped me to UNDERSTAND math ... and thanks to her, I was able to graduate college this past Spring," Valerie Bauer posted on the college's Facebook page.

"I just took her class last semester," added Fabrianne Pruitt. "I have never liked math before her class. I wish I would have told her how much I appreciated her."

Hamman is survived by her husband, Billy, her parents, her brother, and two sisters.