Keith Nabb: Professor and Published Author

PVCC has welcomed many new faculty members to the community this fall semester, all of whom are adapting not only to their new positions, but also to a heavily online environment. One of these new faces, Assistant Professor of Mathematics Dr. Keith Nabb, is more than ready to take on this challenge.

Nabb went to Ponganset High School in North Scituate, Rhode Island, which is part of the Foaster-Glocester School District. From there, he went to Rhode Island College for an engineering program, but shortly after starting he decided to take a semester off when he realized he did not want to pursue a career in engineering. 

“My heart didn’t really feel it,” Nabb said in a recent Zoom interview.

After returning to college, he went into a math program instead and graduated with a B.S. in Secondary Education (Mathematics) from Rhode Island College, then went on to receive a M.S. in Mathematics from Texas Tech University followed by a Ph.D. in Mathematics Education from Illinois Institute of Technology. His interest in education arose when he went with his mother to teach art, discovering his love for teaching.

Nabb worked at Moraine Valley Community College in Illinois for fifteen years, then went on to work at University of Wisconsin-River Falls for four years before getting a job at PVCC. Overall, he preferred his experience with community colleges over universities.

“I like the environment quite a bit better,” Nabb said. “The students are very similar. They just work very hard, they ask when they need something, and I just like the nation of the whole two year.”

COVID-19 posed new challenges for Nabb with a heavily online environment, but he adapted quickly to this new normal, helping his students strive.

“I finally feel like I’m in a groove,” Nabb said. “I do think they’re learning, and that’s the most important thing.”

Nabb has a wide variety of personal interests, such as playing board games with his family, painting, and finally solving a complex math puzzle called Martin’s Menace. On top of this, he is a researcher and published author with a wide collection of podcasts, presentations, and research papers.

“My research interests are in the teaching and learning of mathematics,” Nabb wrote on his website. “Currently, I am working on some projects related to equity in mathematics curricula, active learning, and mathematics teaching at the developmental level.”

For more information, check out Nabb’s website or email him at knabb@pvcc.edu.