Up, down, through the hallways and inside classrooms, quotes and Bible verses cover the walls of the Euler Science Complex building.
Outside classroom 119, a Blaise Pascal quote reads, “We are generally the better persuaded by the reasons we discover ourselves than by those given to us by others.”
At 1 p.m. on a Friday, students blurred past the quote wall into room 119 for class, Number Concepts for Elementary Education. Chatter filled the classroom as Mark Colgan, professor of mathematics, passed out graded quizzes.
Throughout class, Colgan asked students to stand at the front and explain how they solved certain math problems.
“All right,” Colgan said to the class. “And Rachel, did you have one you were going to show us?”
Student Rachel explained her work, and when she finished, Colgan wrote next to the math problem, “Rachel’s method.” Her peers earned similar status — their names written beside the math problems they solved.
Colgan believes when a student discovers something, it becomes their own.
“You remember it,” he said, “and you take it to heart a lot more than if it's just something somebody tells you.”
Colgan said one of his main roles as a professor is to ask the right questions — not necessarily have all the answers. Often he has his students teach one another because it can be more effective than him telling them. To teach a peer, the student must understand the content.
Though Colgan has always enjoyed math — his passion is teaching.
He discovered his calling to teach when he attended Anderson University. During this time, he observed how his mentor/teacher made a difference in his life and others. His mentor made him realize teaching could be ministry.
Colgan wanted to do likewise.
“I always wanted to serve other people,” he said. “I wanted to have a job where it wasn't just like making money or making money for a company, it was something with a deeper purpose. And so I felt like teaching was something that I could do to help people, to help students better their lives.”
In 1992, he came to Taylor University. Colgan served in multiple roles, including associate dean, faculty moderator and professor. In 2010, he was the Math Department Chair and participated in planning the Euler Science Complex building’s construction.
Taylor surprised Colgan with the Teaching Excellence and Campus Leadership Award on Aug. 29, 2025.
“It was a really big surprise,” he said. “My wife kept it a secret from me; she knew and my family knew — so it was one of the best parts really.”
The surprise did not end. His daughter traveled up from Virginia to celebrate with his wife, son, mom, dad and sister. Colgan said the whole family felt honored.
His award was also an honor for the Math Department. The department is very community-oriented, eating once a week together and gathering with students for pie at 3:14 p.m. on Thursdays.
“Since I first came with Dave Neuhouser and Bill Klinger and Paul Harms,” Colgan said, “they were my mentors here at Taylor and just kind of set a foundation for our department that we work together, we learn together, we help each other, we share materials.”
The Math Department also shares in teaching philosophy: learning happens when meaningful connections are made. These connections can occur through discovery, which is why the Math Department chose to display Blaise Pascal’s quote outside classroom 119.
“Students do see those (quotes) and hopefully think about them from time to time,” Colgan said.
Colgan himself has made meaningful connections at Taylor — simultaneously teaching students and faculty while learning from them. These 33 years, he has discovered blessings.
