ABSTRACT
The AMS emphasis on research left some gaps; for this reason, E. H. Moore and Herbert E. Slaught, both at Chicago, formed a separate organization to support and encourage the teaching of mathematics in college and education, the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). As its journal, it took over the already existing American Mathematical Monthly, which presented news, problems, and exposition of mathematical topics of interest to college teachers. The MAA also sponsored the Carus Mathematical Monographs, a series I edited for a period. For this reason, and for other activities in which I participated, I was elected president of the MAA for 195253. During this time, I encouraged the association to be more active;
the MAA secretary, Harry Gehman, who had been a Yale faculty member while I was a student there, helped me in these efforts. I viewed my election to the presidency of the MAA as an opportunity to keep the MAA and AMS together in spirit, since they served the overlapping interests of college and university mathematicians in research and teaching. There is no clean line of demarcation between these activities, and both organizations encourage clear exposition of mathematical ideas. On several occasions, I have even advocated combining the AMS and MAA into one organization, though I have not yet succeeded in this ambition. However, the Joint Mathematics Meetings of the two organizations are vital for the presentation and exchange of ideas, an exchange that is vital for both encouraging relevant research and effective teaching.
