AUT lecturer sums up success at IMMC
Dr Kerri Spooner’s 10-year involvement with the International Mathematical Modelling Challenge pays off again.
Dr Spooner supported a team from Macleans College on their way to glory in the recent International Mathematical Modelling Challenge (IMMC) Summit in Hong Kong.
Dr Spooner, a Senior Lecturer in mathematical sciences at AUT, has been the New Zealand coordinator for the IMMC since 2016.
This year, 39 countries or regions were invited to participate in the challenge, and 69 teams competed in the international round of judging.
Each team was given a modeling problem and then constructed their solutions. This year’s problem was “What would a good global sports league scheduling system look like?”
The New Zealand team, alongside the South Korea team from Minjok Academy, won the International Outstanding Award for 2025. The Macleans College team members were Wai Lap (Alston) Yam, Jay Zhao, Bruce Zhang, Zhiwei (Michael) Lu, with Faculty Advisor Carl Fourie.
Kerri says: “Giving students this opportunity is really important to me, enabling our students to develop themselves as mathematical modellers ready to tackle complex, real-world problems and further contribute to society.”
She added there was a strong connection between the top teams this year as the faculty advisor for the South Korean team was a past student of Macleans College, Auckland, New Zealand.
“This was a truly exceptional result from a group of exceptional young men - and a very proud faculty advisor and teacher,” she said. “And such a lovely irony with the Macleans College association.”
During Kerri’s 10-year involvement with IMMC, New Zealand teams have consistently achieved outstanding results on the international stage, with highlights including:
- 2025: Macleans College – One of two Outstanding International Award winners
- 2022: St Andrew’s College – One of three Outstanding International Award winners
- 2021: Mt Roskill Grammar School – Meritorious Award (one of only six globally)
- 2019: Manurewa High School – Top 5 globally, featured on TVNZ Seven Sharp
- 2016: Whangarei Boys High School – Meritorious Award
This year’s IMMC summit was held on the campuses of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and The University of Hong Kong.