Nadim Stambuli is an Instructor in Mathematics and the Head Coach of JV2 Boys Soccer. Stambuli developed a passion for math from a young age and served as a teaching assistant at Williams College prior to joining Andover. In his free time, Stambuli enjoys playing soccer and squash, making origami sculptures, and biking.
What initially sparked your interest in mathematics?
I’ve always been interested in mathematics. When I was in middle school, I used to sit down with my grandmother every week and we would just do math for the sake of math. I’d finish my math homework, and she would come to me with extra problems and we would just grind it up. That really sparked my love.
You were previously a math teaching assistant at Williams College. How have those experiences shaped how you approached mathematics education?
I remember my first time being a teacher’s assistant at Williams. I was taking a class called Commutative Algebra, which was the hardest math class that I’ve taken at Williams with this really famous professor, and it was a lot of fun. Then, I picked up this gig, [serving as a TA] for a class for students who failed the initial quantitative exam. It was called Foundations in Quantitative [Skills]. I would spend hours preparing for this course, whose material I knew by heart, but I found myself really enjoying the preparation for this class and spending even more time on this than the other class, Commutative Algebra. That sparked an interest in teaching. It was just fun to be in the classroom and talk about problems.
Was there a particular teacher, class, or experience that changed how you viewed mathematics?
Yeah, my high school math teacher, David Hammett, who I’m actually still in touch with now. He was really big into game shows, so he would start off all of his classes with something similar to a problem of the day, but it was taken from a game show called “Press Your Luck” that involves a roulette situation where the Whammy comes up. That was a really big part of my experience in that class because it made math fun and competitive for me. I then went on to take lots of math classes with him over COVID. We did independent studies, and the framework of that class was asynchronous. I would do all of the work by myself, and then would meet once a week to discuss. During our meetings, we were just talking about game shows all the time. He was like, “Okay, do you have any questions about, say, the Pigeonhole Property?” I would say no, totally lie. I just wanted to hang out with my math teacher. So that was really formative.
What challenges did you face during your mathematics journey and how did you overcome them?
I love math, it’s been something that’s fun for me, so I don’t think about studying math or preparing for classes as a pressure. It’s hard work and it’s necessary. When the time comes for the test or for a lesson that I have to give, I know that I’ve put in the necessary work for it to work out. I actually really enjoy the process. But I find the math itself very challenging. At college, there are all these whizzes around me who just know maths so well, and here, I have students here who are much quicker than I am. It’s sometimes challenging to learn math, but I just don’t take it personally. Math is math.
What is your favorite memory or experience at Andover?
My first game as coach for JV2 soccer. I believe it was against Andover High. It was a blowout, 8–1. The Andover [High] coach was furious, which made me feel extra proud. I had questions about whether I put people in the right positions, but [the game] gave me a sense of confidence that we all knew what we were doing, that we were in the right place.
What do you hope your students take away from your classes?
We talk a lot about thinking critically. An important part of that is learning how to approach a problem with confidence, having a set of tools that they’ve been exposed to previously to solve a problem, drawing from that repertoire of tools, and having an intuition.
If you could meet one historical figure, who would it be and why?
The person’s still alive. His name is Andrew Wiles, a mathematician, famously known for proving Fermat’s Last Theorem. He spent maybe up to six years in isolation, proving this thing, and at the same time, he was holding a position as a professor. It’s really funny what he did. Obviously, in order to be a professor, you have to publish work regularly to not get fired. So, he came up with all of this work and then released it every few months, so that was kind of funny and makes him an interesting character. Another thing is that the theorem he proved was groundbreaking. People have been trying to prove this thing for centuries, since Fermat’s time. He delivered a two-hour lecture outlining his proof, and then he ended the lecture with a mic drop, like, “and that’s all, folks,” or something like that, which I think was also a really baller thing.
Is there a particular math theorem, proof, or problem that you find especially beautiful?
I find the math that underlies cryptography really beautiful. It comes from number theory, which is part of my independent study with my math teacher. I took three courses, multi[variable calculus], number theory, and combinatorics. It’s awesome to learn about just the mechanisms behind the modern day encryption system, which all hinges on choke points that are mathematical. Problems that are really hard to solve in math are exceptionally useful for applications in encryption and in real life.
What are your favorite hobbies?
My favorite hobbies include playing soccer and squash, making origami sculptures, taking walks, and biking around. Maybe people have seen me on my big blue bike, which I love very much.
What advice would you give to Andover students, particularly those interested in pursuing math? wDdw
In high school, I was really focused on my grades. It stressed me out and sometimes would deteriorate my quality of life. Thinking about it retrospectively, none of those emotions of stress or adrenaline or fear actually helped me out in the short term, or in the long run. Really what made me be a successful student, if that’s what you’re interested in doing, was my love for math. All of the other things, like hard work and determination, if I don’t like what I’m doing, that’s all gonna fall off in the short term. I’m just following the things that I enjoy and then seeing what comes up.
