Livingston Teens Put Their Math Skills To The Test

LIVINGSTON, NJ — A team of high school students from Livingston are putting their math skills to work solving a real-world problem: How can we make a dent in the dual issues of homelessness and affordable housing?

A group of five Livingston High School students recently earned their way into the finals of an international online math competition, the MathWorks Math Modeling Challenge (M3 Challenge).

The five students – Harsh Akunuri, Olivia Mei, Timothy Wu, Kevin Zhang and Nathan Zhang – beat out nearly 3,000 other high school students across the U.S. and the U.K. to earn a berth in the finals.

Using mathematical modeling, students had to come up with solutions to real-world questions: “How do we solve the intertwined crises of homelessness and a shortage of affordable housing, especially given that they are often exacerbated by unforeseen circumstances such as natural disasters, humanitarian crises, and economic downturns? Can we predict long-term changes in the housing supply and unhoused population? If so, how can we use this information to devise real, long-term solutions for homelessness?”

The team’s coach, mathematics teacher Cheryl Coursen, said the team members from LHS had a great time working on the M3 Challenge problem, finding ways to solve “outside of the box situations” with no concrete solutions.

“The future depends upon it,” Coursen emphasized.

Mei said the challenge was “stressful and difficult” for herself and the rest of the team, but they had a great time working together.

“It was fascinating to see how our own interests and experiences led to different problem-solving approaches, and ultimately, were united by the writing in our paper,” Mei said.

Of the 655 papers submitted to this year’s challenge, 128 advanced to the second round of judging. A total of 37 distinctions are awarded with scholarship prizes – roughly 6 percent of the submissions.

The top six awards will be announced after the final round of judging on April 29 in New York City. Winning teams will be awarded a share of $100,000 in scholarships, with the champion team receiving $20,000.

“The cost of housing in the U.S. and the U.K. has increased faster than people’s incomes, making rent or mortgage payments challenging for many,” said Karen Bliss, senior manager of education and outreach at the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

“This issue is often due to a shortage of available housing, which has reached crisis levels and has been associated with a significant increase in homelessness in many large cities,” Bliss said.

“Stable housing can ease homelessness and is often an important first step in helping people tackle other challenges like addiction, mental health issues, and unemployment, but increasing the housing supply is slow and requires significant financial investment,” Bliss added. “There are also other complex issues to consider, such as land restrictions, population growth, financial constraints, and longevity of a housing structure.”

• See Related: What The New Affordable Housing Law Means For NJ Homeowners
• See Related: Essex County's Homeless Total Drops, But Still Leads New Jersey

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