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Smith's Hill High School

Smith's Hill High School

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Alumni Life - Jonathan Zhu

shhs alumni life heading with yellow background

Jonathan Zhu, alumnus from 2008, was very kind to acknowledge his time in the Visual Arts classroom as a youngster when he recalled making a clay fish! However, his gift was always within the field of Mathematics which he loves still. In Jonathan’s recollection of his high school days he says…”Maths was my favourite, but we had a lot of fun in Software Design & Development.”

Jonathan has already had a stellar academic career, having studied Maths at the University of Sydney and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, then attaining a PhD from Harvard. He has been an instructor at Princeton, and briefly, during Covid, during a stint at the Australian National University. He is now a professor at the University of Washington!

“I moved back to Wollongong when the pandemic hit and took a brief position at ANU. Aside from lockdowns and pandemic things, it was actually great to reconnect with SHHS friends, and I got a lot of good research and collaboration done at ANU.”

On the subject of creativity he says…”I think Maths is a much more creative field than people expect from their experience in high school and even in uni – there’s certainly a technical element but the real innovation is in coming up with a totally new concept or idea. My research is in geometry, so I spend a lot of my time doodling and trying to understand what’s going on visually. There’s a pretty famous geometer [Bill Thurston - http://www.ams.org/publicoutreach/feature-column/fc-2017-04] who has a visual impairment, but this has meant that he’s able to see things in a completely different way and come up with very unexpected insights!

I am sure that his teachers would be gratified to see how well Jonathan is doing. He acknowledges Mr Ransom, Mr Wade and Mr Natalenko who were always supportive and encouraged him in pushing himself. “I think SHHS was great for giving a really rounded experience, and personally for allowing me so much flexibility to explore academically”.

Jonathan feels lucky that he’s gotten to a point where…”I can just research problems that I find intrinsically interesting  and challenging in the moment.” He sees himself as a tenured professor in the near future.

I am sure many will relate to Jonathan’s advice for current SHHS students to…”avoid the need to fit into things, including yourselves, into boxes. There’s so much more commonality in what we do as people. Maths in particular is often seen as something you’re either good at or you’re not, but logical, critical – indeed mathematical – thinking is needed and wonderfully exhibited in so many areas”.

Jonathan’s inner voice at the age of 17 encouraged him to…”Back yourself to give any challenge a go!”

There is a sub-text in his message about maintaining a balance between intellectual life and study with keeping fit and active … as Jonathan fondly remembers playing sports every recess and lunch with high school friends. Then of course, “muck up day”, the time at the end of Year 12, although at SHHS, the students have managed to re-brand this phenomenon into a positive experience involving the whole school. I actually recall the antics of his year when Year 12 obstructed the bridge to the library with glad wrap/tape/string!! Quite annoying … but… creative too! Still a keen sportsman, Jonathan enjoys; canoeing, cycling, tennis and outdoor activities but is also inspired by the geometry of the natural world.

If you are reading this as a SHHS alumni, I’d love to hear your career story so far! Also, please comment and share this article with your social network. Contact me through the school - smithshill-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Sharon Mearing – Retired Visual Arts teacher and HT Welfare