Asbury Math and Science Alumni Offer Insight on the Future Workforce
February 3, 2023
Technological advances continue to automate jobs, yet opportunities abound for Asbury students in the fields of math and science.
Asbury alumni such as Dr. Corey Winton ’04 and Dr. Melissa Howard ’07 Rondeau continue to apply skills gained from a liberal arts education to their respective fields of financial services and medical communications. Winton works as Senior Quantitative Analyst/Developer at Fidelity Investments, and Rondeau works as Senior Executive Vice President, Head of Medical Affairs at Symbiotix.
“I help translate fund managers’ ideas into math problems,” Winton said. “For these types of problems, the way we structure the equations can have a dramatic impact on the speed and accuracy of the solution. Our job is to pose the questions efficiently, so that the billions or trillions of dollars invested are well managed.”
“I oversee a team that works in medical affairs,” Rondeau explained. “We create educational programs and materials for providers and patients through working with pharmaceutical and biotechnological companies. We work to educate on both disease states and new medications.”
During their time at Asbury, Winton studied applied mathematics, and Rondeau studied biochemistry. Graduating from Asbury opened doors to graduate school, with Winton earning his Ph.D. in applied mathematics from North Carolina State University and Rondeau earning her Ph.D. in pharmaceutical sciences from the University of Kentucky.
“I knew when I stepped onto campus, this is where I wanted to be,” Rondeau said. “Getting a Christian education was important to me. Ultimately, Asbury prepared me to show up every day in my career and represent Christ in a dark world.”
Both Winton and Rondeau reflect on their formative undergraduate years.
“Although my favorite classes were in Hamann-Ray solving math problems, I appreciated gaining exposure to G.K. Chesterton in Dr. [Daniel] Strait’s English classes and learning more about history,” Winton said. “As a result, I became more well-rounded and better able to see the world more holistically.”
“Academic training goes beyond one’s field of study,” Rondeau said. “Asbury taught me how to ask questions and solve problems that I applied in my graduate studies and now use in my current role.”
Winton highlights the benefits of getting a liberal arts education, an especially important endeavor in a rapidly changing world.
“There is nothing wrong with a narrowly focused trade school approach to education,” he said. “But there remains significant value in understanding people and having conversations through philosophy and literature.”
“God’s calling is more about who we are than what we do,” Winton said. “For so long, I placed value on ‘calling’ in relation to doing things. It made me feel special and was difficult for me to leave that mindset. You and I are called to be people, and we are called to build relationships with each other.”
Winton reflects on the future of work.
“My grandfather had one job in his career working for a steel company,” he said. “Times have changed. Computers and efficiency have made career progression for many industries look very different. Through all the change, a liberal arts education provides a holistic approach to problem-solving, which is needed by organizations across industries.”
The Asbury University Shaw School of Sciences offers 14 majors and six minors, including biology, chemistry, and physics. Learn more at: https://www.asbury.edu/about/offices/schools/science-health-math/.