Will Johnson, a senior majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics, has been named a Putnam Fellow for finishing among the top five students in the nation — from among 4,036 competitors — in this year’s William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition. Will is the first University of Washington student to win a Putnam Fellowship since the competition was initiated in 1938.
Four other UW students finished among the top 500 in this year’s Putnam Competition, including Computer Science senior Keyun Tong and Computer Engineering freshman Steve Rutherford.
Johnson also participated in last year’s competition, where he finished sixth — “just out of the money.” Keyun finished in the top 500 last year. Steve’s older brother Michael also competed last year — he was a CSE senior at the time. (There must be something in the water in Wenatchee!)
Congratulations to these students on this remarkable achievement. Congratulations also to the other UW participants, and to the outstanding coaches — UW Mathematics professors Ioana Dumitriu and Julia Pevtsova.