David Jao
Professor and Chair
Combinatorics and Optimization
Prof. Jao received his undergraduate degree from MIT and his PhD from Harvard before working at Microsoft for three years prior to joining the University of Waterloo in 2006. He is a multi-time participant, counselor, and instructor with decades of involvement at the PROMYS (Program in Mathematics for Young Scientists) program in Boston University, a six-week residential summer mathematics camp whose guiding principles inspired the creation of AeXIOM.
At the University of Waterloo, Prof. Jao received the Faculty of Mathematics Award for Distinction in Teaching in 2017, based largely on his work in implementing ideas from the PROMYS program at the undergraduate teaching level.
Yu-Ru Liu
Professor, Pure Mathematics
Associate Dean, EDI & Student Empowerment
Prof. Liu received her PhD from Harvard and joined the University of Waterloo Mathematics Faculty in 2003. She is currently the director of the Women in Mathematics (WiM) Committee. Under Prof. Liu's leadership, WiM has become a cornerstone of the university's equity landscape and received the 2025 Faculty Association of the University of Waterloo Equity & Inclusivity Award in recognition of its exemplary commitment to improving equity, diversity, and inclusivity.
Prof. Liu is a recipient of the Faculty of Mathematics Award for Distinction in Teaching in 2013, the University of Waterloo’s Distinguished Teacher Award in 2026 and the 2026 Canadian Mathematical Society Krieger-Nelson Research Prize. She was named a Canadian Mathematical Society Fellow in 2026.
Ty Ghaswala
Associate Professor
Centre for Education in Mathematics and Computing (CEMC) and Pure Mathematics
Prof. Ghaswala earned his Bachelors degree in Melbourne and Masters and PhD degrees at the University of Waterloo. Since 2022, he has been a faculty member in the Centre for Education in Mathematics and Computing at the University of Waterloo. Founded in 1995, the CEMC promotes engagement in mathematics and computer science among elementary and high school students in Canada and abroad, through their internationally recognized math contests, Math Circles, school visits, and targeted programs for girls such as "Think About Math!". In 2018, the CMS awarded the CEMC the Adrien Pouliot Award for significant and sustained contributions to mathematics education in Canada.
Prof. Ghaswala is a former tutor and lecturer for the Australian National Mathematics Summer School, a two-week residential summer program for grade 11 and 12 students in Australia, which is built around principles similar to those of PROMYS and AeXIOM.