Rate My Professor Molly Lynch

Molly Lynch is an Assistant Professor of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science at Hollins University, where she joined the faculty in 2019 as a Visiting Assistant Professor following the completion of her Ph.D. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics from North Carolina State University in May 2019, with Patricia L. Hersh as her dissertation advisor. Lynch's research centers on combinatorics, encompassing combinatorial representation theory, algebraic combinatorics, topological combinatorics, and the study of crystal graphs. Her work employs tools such as discrete Morse theory to investigate relations in partially ordered sets and crystal graph structures.

Lynch has authored several notable publications, including 'Relations in doubly laced crystal graphs via discrete Morse theory' published in the Journal of Combinatorics (Volume 12, Number 1, 2021, pp. 117-155), which examines Stembridge relations in crystal graphs. In 2025, she published 'Approximating Mathematical Constants using Minecraft' in Mathematics Magazine and co-authored 'Generalized Hockey Stick Theorem' with Michael Weselcouch (arXiv:2506.16469), offering a sign-reversing involution proof for a novel identity generalizing classical hockey stick identities. She mentors undergraduate researchers extensively, supervising projects presented at the Virginia Tech Summer Research Conference, Hollins Science Seminars—including tau-indifferent parking functions and health metrics impacts on economic growth—and the Mathematical Association of America MD-DC-VA Section meetings. Lynch contributed as a co-principal investigator to Hollins University's $999,998 NSF S-STEM grant awarded in 2023 for the Artemis Scholarship Program, which supports high-achieving women in STEM through full scholarships, mentorship, and leadership development in fields like mathematics. She serves as newsletter editor for the MAA MD-DC-VA Section and has presented at conferences such as the AMS 2025 Fall Western Sectional Meeting and Roanoke College's conversation series. Her efforts enhance undergraduate research opportunities and promote women in STEM at Hollins.