Bridge to Calculus
Bridge to Calculus prepares high school students to take AP calculus and other calculus courses, mainly through its signature program, an intensive six-week summer session on the Northeastern University campus, as well as the annual Calculus Field Day, and support channels like the Virtual Math Question Center. The success of Bridge to Calculus has been widely acknowledged by many, including former Boston mayor Marty Walsh and MA State Representative Jeffrey Sanchez.
About Bridge to Calculus
Bridge to Calculus prepares Boston Public School students to succeed in AP Calculus and other advanced mathematics courses.
Founded by Professor Robert Case at Northeastern University, the program is built on a mission to expand access to higher-level math, promote racial and social equity in STEM, and empower students from underserved communities.
The initiative represents a strong partnership among Boston Public School teachers, Northeastern University faculty, mentors, and alumni. Teachers serve as the primary instructors while university partners provide academic support, mentoring, and enrichment.
By fostering confidence and skill in mathematics, Bridge to Calculus not only prepares students for academic success but also contributes to the overall strengthening of the Boston education system
85%
student attendance rate
15+
Boston public schools participating
3,000+
students enrolled to date
What is Bridge to Calculus?
A Brief History
Programs
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Summer Program
A seven-week intensive learning experience at Northeastern University designed to prepare students for calculus and higher-level math. The program combines hands-on problem solving, classroom collaboration, and mentorship to build academic strength and confidence.
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Virtual Math Question Center
An ongoing online support platform that connects students with mentors and peers to answer questions, review assignments, and strengthen math understanding throughout the academic year.
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Calculus Field Day
An annual celebration of mathematics bringing together more than 100 Boston Public School students for collaborative and competitive challenges in Precalculus and AP Calculus.
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Mini Conferences and Workshops
Interactive sessions for teachers to have a discussion on trending topics and equipping them with latest skills. Recurring workshops for students to explore real-world skills of math and science.
Our Team
Meet the leaders, instructors, mentors, and project managers who enable the success of the Bridge to Calculus program and its students.
Meet our Team-
Robert Case
Born and raised in Boston, Robert Case attended public school from kindergarten until graduation. Dr. Case spent much of his youth playing baseball and hockey on the playgrounds and frozen ponds in and around Boston—but remembers how fortunate he was to have extraordinary, inspiring teachers during that time, especially his math teacher, Arthur Leary, at […] -
Donald King
Donald King was a faculty member in the math department of Northeastern University for almost 40 years. He retired at the end of 2018. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York, in the 1950s and early 1960s, at which time he developed a deep passion for mathematics and physics. With the help of very loving […] -
Egon Schulte
Dr. Egon Schulte is a professor in mathematics at Northeastern. His main areas of expertise include Discrete and Combinatorial Geometry, Combinatorics, and Group Theory, and his recent teaching activities have focused on graduation education and the supervision of PhD students. Egon witnessed Bridge to Calculus grow from a small outreach program for Boston area high-school […] -
Hear from our team
Bridge to Calculus:
Christopher’s Story
Math Question Center:
Chiruza Muhimuzi, Mentee
Bridge to Calculus:
Brenda Cassellius
Join our team
Meet our Alumni
Scholar Spotlight: Christoper Suplice
Northeastern and Bridge to Calculus alum Christopher Suplice has Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy, a condition that has left him mostly blind. His experience has motivated him to use computer science to create technology for people with visual impairments, like himself.
Frinny Polanco Walters, MD
Frinny Polanco Walters, MD, is an attending physician in the division of adolescent and young adult medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital, a fellow in the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in minority health policy at Harvard University, and an MPH candidate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Walters is an Afro-Latinx doctor who was born in the Dominican Republic and grew up in Jamaica Plain, a suburb just outside Boston. She attended college at Brown University and moved to Washington, D.C., thereafter to serve as a Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Fellow, working alongside health policy experts to address issues affecting underserved communities. While in the D.C. area, Dr. Walters also worked at the National Institutes of Health researching the lack of involvement of minority populations in clinical trials. Next, she started her medical career at New York Medical College and returned to Boston for a pediatrics residency at the Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center and a fellowship in adolescent medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Gabrielle Rigaud, PE
Since Gabrielle Rigaud’s days in the Bridge to Calculus program back in 2000, she’s enjoyed a career in the field of civil engineering, specifically as a geotechnical engineer. After Ms. Rigaud immigrated from Haiti and struggled to learn English, Bridge to Calculus prepared her to take AP Calculus, pass the AP exam, and eventually attend college at Tufts, with the advantage of having AP course credit and a strong foundation in math. The knowledge and confidence Ms. Rigaud gained from the program made engineering an obvious choice despite the rigorous and challenging coursework. She went on to pursue a master’s degree, which has helped her support emergency disaster efforts in the U.S. and around the world, and built the base for a fulfilling career in an exciting STEM field. Two decades later, Ms. Rigaud is forever grateful to her high school teacher, Dr. Krishna Rajangam, for signing her up for the Bridge to Calculus program, and for her mentor and friend, Professor Robert Case, for feeding her curiosity and making calculus seem easy during her summer in the program.
Yuyu Chen
The John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science’s program and teachers prepared Yuyu Chen for AP calculus, opened life-changing doors for him, and equipped him with the resources to succeed as a mathematics major in college. The program also inspired him to pay it forward by becoming a teacher after graduation. Mr. Chen also returned to the Bridge to Calculus program to serve as a teacher and mentor at his former high school—an experience he called “amazing!
Daniela Alarcon-Diaz
As a Boston Public Schools alum and the salutatorian of her graduating class, Daniela Alarcon-Diaz was awarded Northeastern’s Boston Public High School Scholarship and is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in business administration at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business. Ms. Alarcon Diaz is a proud Latina and Bridge to Calculus alum excited to have the opportunity to work in the Question Center and to provide mentorship to Boston Public School students through the Bridge to Calculus program. Ms. Alarcon-Diaz is also grateful to be part of the BtC Committee and advocate for the program and the needs of the students.
Tristan Campbell
Tristan Campbell is a BtC program 2008 alumnus. He describes the program as a true bridge, ‘paving the way for him to hit the ground running’ at Boston University, where he studied electrical engineering with a focus on computer engineering and science. Since that time, Tristan has been involved in multiple projects, including Android application development, embedded radar, attached storage file systems, and cloud computing.
Are you a BtC alum?
We’d love to hear from you and connect!
Bridge to Calculus Partners
Bridge to Calculus is supported by a network of educational, community, and industry collaborators committed to fostering math readiness and equal opportunity. These collaborations help extend the program’s reach and ensure lasting student impact.
PieRSquared
PieRSqaured provides small-group math tutoring and volunteer-led support across Boston.
Boston Private Industry Council
Boston Private Industry Council strengthens education-to-career connections and supports experiential learning.
Boston Debate League
Boston Debate League builds communication and reasoning skills that enhance classroom learning.
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum incorporates creative learning and art-based problem-solving into math exploration.
Boston Public Schools
Ten partner schools in the Boston Public Schools district host and support the program annually.
In the News
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Northeastern’s ‘Bridge’ helps Boston public school students traverse calculus chasm
In 1994, Northeastern mathematics professor Robert Case started Bridge to Calculus. This summer program offers students who might not have access to AP math curricula a free summer program at Northeastern. -
Bridge to Calculus program is recognized for its positive impact on Boston’s educational system
Bob Case, Emeritus Mathematics professor and alum of Boston public schools noted that students living in the city, coming from disadvantaged backgrounds, were not receiving the same caliber of mathematics education as their counterparts in the suburbs, so he decided to do something about it. In 1994, Bob Case founded Bridge to Calculus. This six-week […] -
News
Northeastern empowers Boston teens through summer internships and math program
The program has two components to help students get ahead during the summer months. Students can either take part in internships offered at more than 30 departments on campus or participate in the university’s long-running Bridge to Calculus: a Bridge to Science program, a seven-week intensive summer program aimed to help Boston high school students get a better handle on their math skills before heading back to class in the fall; this year’s program was expanded to include physics, chemistry and biology.
In The Media
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America’s poor math skills raise alarms over global competitiveness
Bindu Veetel
MATHEMATICS
October 30, 2023 -
Americans have poor math skills. It’s a threat to US standing in the global economy, employers say
Bindu Veetel
MATHEMATICS
October 30, 2023 -
Why it matters that Americans are comparatively bad at math
Bindu Veetel
MATHEMATICS
October 30, 2023