Get to know your professor: Dr. Hedman
Jenna Rice
Issue date: 11/6/09 Section: News
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Hedman has taught a wide range of math classes at FSC including courses in both pure and applied mathematics such as number theory, numerical methods, differential equations, and math ,mthods for physics. For non-math majors, he teaches courses like contemporary mathematics and math modeling.
Next semester, he is teaching a math theory class, which is one of his favorite courses to teach. He feels that it is really important for people to understand how numbers work, so this class would be quite beneficial to take. Hedman also really enjoys teaching statistics and calculus classes.
Hedman had a long journey of education before he received his PhD to become a college professor. After high school, he went to a junior college for a little while and worked in St. Petersburgh at various jobs. Later, Hedman attended DePaul University for two years, where he received his Bachelors degree. Afterwards, he went to the University of Illinois at Chicago for nine years, to attain his PhD. While he was there, he also taught as a teaching assistant.
Hedman was born and raised in Moline, Illinois, yet he likes to call Lakeland his hometown. "I feel more at home in Lakeland, Florida than I have in any other place," Hedman said.
"I decided to come here because I wanted to live in Florida," Hedman said. His mother and brother live in the Clearwater area. He loves the weather and the scenery down here a lot, too. "It's a beautiful place," Hedman said. He said that he enjoys Lakeland because it is a great place to raise families too. "I am very happy here," Hedman said. He has loved working here and he plans to be here for a very long time.
Hedman said that he enjoys the fact that he knows his students by name at FSC. The teaching experience he had in Maryland was quite different. He taught a lecture class that was comprised of 256 students and four teaching assistants.
He was bothered by the fact that he could not possibly individually help anyone in the class, or tell if they understand what he was teaching. He was even told up-front by the department that 40 percent would fail.
"Here, I feel like I'm teaching," Hedman said.
He is very enthusiastic about helping students that do not understand something. He is very approachable-students, if you have him as a professor never hesitate to ask him for help.
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