Dr. Richard Neidinger
Class of 1973
Lutheran High School North
Affter graduating from Lutheran North, Richard attended Trinity University in San Antonio, TX, where he received his B.A. in Mathematics and Physics in 1977. He then proceeded to the University of Texas, Austin, to earn his M.A. in Mathematics in 1980. He continued his studies in Austin to receive his Ph.D. in Mathematics in 1984.
Rich began his teaching career in 1984 at Davidson College, ranked one of the best liberal arts colleges in the nation. Davidson is a private college with affiliation to the Presbyterian Church. Two major themes that are a part of the culture at Davidson are respect for diversity of all kinds and a service mentality in life.
Dr. Neidinger was promoted to full Professor in 1997 at Davidson. He became Chair of the Department of Mathematics in 2003. Among his many honors, he was the recipient of the George Pólya Award from the Mathematical Association of America in 1990 for an outstanding article, Automatic Differentiation and APL in The College Mathematics Journal. He is the author of over 25 articles in mathematical or computational journals, including The American Mathematical Monthly, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Review, Mathematics of Computation, and Pacific Journal of Mathematics.
Richard’s interests beyond family and work include the founding of Friends of Accion, Inc., a nonprofit that supports access to education in the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico. He also coordinates partnerships in missions between U.S. and Mexican Protestant churches, all through Accion Ministries in Mexico. The ministry runs three group homes where youth can live in a Christian environment during the week to be able to attend high school and college. Richard is an Elder in the Presbyterian church, an adult Bible study teacher, and works with a monthly food pantry. The emphasis of Christian culture and service at Lutheran North and Davidson College are exemplified by Richard’s life activities.
Richard married Barbara Ingram Neidinger (C.P.A.) in 1978. Their daughter, Dana, recently completed a Ph.D. in Mathematics at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and is now a professor at Centre College in Kentucky.