It is with deep sadness that we report the passing of Professor McKenzie ‘Ken’ Alexander Clements AM. Throughout his life, Ken was an instrumental figure in shaping mathematics education on both a national and international stage.
Ken commenced his teaching career in the classroom — a grassroots beginning that informed much of his subsequent work in academia. While taking a break from high school teaching, he worked as a lecturer and then a senior mathematics lecturer at Monash University. His reputation as a leading educator and mathematician would be bolstered by posts at the University of Newcastle and Deakin University — where he would first meet his lifelong friend and future wife, Nerida Ellerton (pictured). Ken concluded his academic career in the United States at Illinois State University’s highly respected Department of Mathematics.
The only individual in his family to have completed high school, the University of Melbourne graduate held a deep appreciation for the power of education, irrespective of background. It was this lived experience that propelled him to address educational issues, particularly in the mathematical sciences. In 1976, he co-founded the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (MERGA).
Ken’s unwavering commitment to improving mathematical capacity would come to the fore yet again with his indirect involvement in the formation of AMSI in 2002. He had an innate ability to place the right people in appropriate roles. In the early days of Science & Technology Australia (STA), he nominated Jan Thomas OAM as MERGA’s representative on the Australian Mathematical Sciences Council, formed under STA. This enabled Jan to develop the relevant political connections that helped to get projects such as AMSI Summer School off the ground.
Speaking after his passing, Jan, who would go on to become AMSI’s first executive officer, noted that Ken was “a friend and a remarkable individual. Putting me forward for the role of MERGA representative had a profound effect on both myself and the Australian maths community.”
Ken authored and co-authored more than 30 books and published over 250 scholarly articles across the fields of mathematics, language, culture, teaching and teacher education. Notably, he was a childhood mentor of mathematician and Fields Medallist, Terence Tao.
Outside of academia, Ken was a loyal Western Bulldogs supporter, an unyielding dedication that often sparked colourful conversation with friends and colleagues — especially throughout their fallow years of the early 2000s.
In 2018, Ken was awarded the Order of Australia (AM), General Division for his significant service to tertiary education through mathematics research and instruction as an academic, author and mentor.
This loss will be felt not only within AMSI but across the wider tertiary mathematics sector at home and abroad. His legacy as a renowned mathematician, educator, author and loving husband will long be remembered.
Image courtesy of Illinois State University
