Faculty & Leadership Blog / Faculty in the News

Babson Professor Richard Cleary Delivers Denison University’s Gordon Lecture

Richard J. Cleary, professor of statistics and mathematics at Babson, delivered the Denison University Department of Mathematics and Computer Science Gordon Lecture Series on November 6th.

Cleary spoke about “Non-Standard Applications of Mathematics and Statistics to Sports.”

In addition to the Gordon Lecture, Cleary delivered an additional address at Denison concerning “Benford’s Law and Fraud Detection in Auditing.”

Finally, he served as a guest lecturer in several classes.

Richard Cleary

Richard Cleary

About Richard J. Cleary

Professor Cleary, chair of the Mathematics and Science Division, is a statistician and mathematician with research and consulting interests in a variety of fields including sports, biomechanics, and market research.

Most recently he has worked with colleagues and practitioners on statistical approaches to fraud detection and audit risk.

Prior to coming to Babson College in 2013, Professor Cleary has taught at Saint Michael’s College in Vermont, Cornell University, Bentley University, and Harvard University.

He has been very active in the Mathematical Association of America, serving six years as Associate Treasurer and Budget Committee Chair.

He is a long-serving member of the Joint Data Committee, a body that tracks trends in the profession for several mathematical and statistical societies.​

About The Gordon Lecture

For the love of mathematics

The Doris G. Gordon Lecture Series is named in honor of Doris Gilbert Gordon, a high school mathematics teacher and a friend of Denison. Newark attorney L. James Gordon (’50) and his sister, Janet Gordon Forbes (’55), established the Doris G. Gordon fund in memory of their mother who had a great love of mathematics.

Doris Gordon was a long time resident of Granville and wife of Leland J. Gordon who was a Denison professor of economics. Mrs. Gordon earned a B.A. in mathematics from Swarthmore College and an M.A. in mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to being a high school teacher in Pennsylvania and Ohio, she was an instructor in the V-12 Program at Denison in World War II and was later associated with Owens-Corning in a research capacity. Mrs. Gordon also provided her husband with mathematical and statistical data that he used in numerous textbooks.

Notable speakers from past years include:

  • Michael Starbird, mathematician & co-author of “The Heart of Mathematics: An Invitation to Effective Thinking”
  • Michael Nielson, writer, scientist, programmer & author of “Reinventing Discovery: The New Era of Networked Science”
  • Robin J. Wilson, mathematician & former editor-in-chief of the European Mathematical Society Newsletter