Dr Courtney Thatcher will talk about spatial models for evaluating electoral districts.

Dr Courtney Thatcher, associate professor of mathematics and computer science at the University of Puget Sound, will explain the results of a four -year interdisciplinary research program in which students from across the country built spatial models to evaluate electoral district maps. The study was conducted under a grant from the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates. Dr Thatcher is hopeful that this research may help reduce gerrymandering and produce fairer election districts.