I only stuck with this class because of this awesome guy. It's very hard - very abstract, be warned - but he manages to teach it succinctly. He's very funny too. Great teacher. Wish class was easier. But him, his stories, and his mannerisms are unforgetable. Take a class with him. Won't regret it.

Debacker is very helpful if you go to his office hours. He's also very encouraging, even when he seems discouraged by how clueless we are during class.

This man is on fire!

I like his jokes.

Good teacher, jokes are corny, really dedicated to making sure you understand the concepts

DeBacker is hilarious and actually makes calc somewhat entertaining, definetly take math with him... you will understand alot more and he tells great jokes half an hour into the lecture!!

Vector Calculus comes alive thru Debacker. Daily jokes are always a good, plus hilarious personal stories. Goes into great detail to make you understand. Couple tests, "pop" quizzes, and class is curved based on scores. Lab for class is rather pointless. Great teacher overall

Great guy. Always did the joke per day, gave the class a nice break. He taught the topics well too. Although calc 3 isnt my favorite, I was more bearable thanks to stephen. My favorite joke was something about "this is where fun comes to die".

DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS UNLESS YOU HAVE AT LEAST CALC 3! I made that mistake... But he's a good guy, tells jokes and stories. Did proofs clearly. But he definitely talks soft, so sit close.

Very thorough, quick witted. Genuinely interested in the education of his students. 'Joke-time' is a real attention keeper; it surely helped me keep focused during the 8am lecture!

Even though I wasn't excited about Calc 3, Prof. Debacker made life much more bearable. I don't think I could have survived 8am lecture without "Joke Time", though. Overall, a great professor; one that I would gladly take another class with...

Professor Debacker was amazing. He made Calc 3 so much easier than it would have been becuase he explains things so well. He always tells jokes in the middle of class!!

Great teacher, his interest and willingness to help students made this class much easier. His sectons did a lot better than the other sections due to this.

He is a easy professor, easy A in math 215, work hard and you may get an A+

When you are deep into thought on the final exam, and you cant remember how to find the volume of a solid: Don't fret. Its simply the triple integral over the region of the number one. You know, the number one, like the total number of different shirts professor Debacker has worn to lecture this year. With that said, he is still amazing. GO BLUE

He has a decent set of jokes and tells one a day at thirty minutes into the class.

Debacker is incredible, really helpful, and not quite as scary as he seems at first. Great lecturer, and really enthusiastic. 295, on the other hand, is only for the crazy. If you do well in it, you will end up in love with mathematics, but it requires a large commitment and is very fast-paced. So consider carefully if that's what you want.

DeBacker is a superb lecturer, and fast. Always clear and explicit, though his teaching betrays sadomasochistic tendencies.

Awesome professor woot

Debacker is an amazing professor, but his subject matter is amazingly difficult. It was worth it though. I learned so much from him.

You can tell that Stephen REALLY loves math, and it gets you excited about it. Its a pity that the material in 295 isn't necessary for everyone to know because its really is fundamental and beautiful mathematics. Stephen knows how to put things in perspective and is ALWAYS there to help.

Incredible. Ridiculously hard class, but I learned so much from him. Has a very nerdy collection of jokes and you'll hear them all. He's an extremely helpful, pretty laid-back guy who really cares about his students and will do anything to help them succeed. This class is a lot of work but 110% worth it.

Debacker is amazing. He has a low voice and some jokes that are hard to understand, or hard to laugh at. But his proof is clear and strong. Before, I considered math useful, but Debacker has made me consider math beautiful. He works a lot and really cares about students. And he is very encouraging. Great teacher. Hope he can get more sleep!

He's funny (in a dorky way) but his class is extremely hard.

Great classes (both 295 and 296).. Only for those who reeeeeeaaaaalllyy love math. You'll learn a ton.

I wonder if deBacker's height is proportional to his... you know...

What a dude.

DeBacker's classes will be quite a bit of work, but definitely worth it. You learn a lot. Plus he tells jokes in class, what more could you want?

DeBacker is a VERY smart guy. I'm planning on doing Fin. Math and took 295. I have never learned so much about math; you get a deep, RIGOROUS, proof-based understanding. Expect to spend 20+ hours on the weekly problem sets. Everyone gets at least an A- if you do ALL the work. Wears a math shirt every day and tells a joke halfway through lecture.

295: best math class I've ever taken. Nothing else to say. If you're considering 295, you have to absolutely love math. Everyone who signs up for the class was "that crazy math kid" at hisher high school, and only half of them end up finishing it.

The homework takes 20-30 hours every week. Unless you are crazy about math, don't take it! It will make you crazy. To score high in tests, you should read many reference stuffs to help you know the concepts better, and you should be good at memorizing and can solve problems very fast! Sometimes the homework is not relevant to the lectures.

He really cares about students. Please don't hurt his feelings. He works hard. He tells jokes in class. The memorizing parts of the exams are to help us get some easy points.

Awesome guy, right? You have to love math if you hope to take 296.

First of all, I should say that Math 296 is not for everyone. It can make u crazy, either in a good way or a bad way. DeBacker loves math and loves teaching, and he is very very nice to students. But still, it is hard for one to really know the materials well. Because there are too many stuffs to learn. Maybe 4 hours per day is reasonable.

Extremely helpful both in classroom and out of classroom.

He may be tougher than other professors in 217, but it's just because he has an almost contagious passion and enthusiasm for the material! He is super friendly and helpful, and he'll give you so many opportunities to get help with the tough class material!

Simply the best Mathematics teacher I've ever had.

One of the best professors I've ever had. Learned a lot.

Assigns tons of homework but grades generously (Everyone gets at least A-). Strongly recommended if you want to take a proof-based math course.

If you were to show me a picture of Professor DeBacker and a picture of an angel, I would be looking at the same picture twice because Professor DeBacker is an angel

Professor Debacker is an amazing professor who really cares about his students. He's funny and willing to help, but if you don't go to office hours you are making a huge mistake. There is so much homework, easily 20-30 hours a week, so it's a huge time commitment. Don't take this with many other hard classes, and START THE HOMEWORK BEFORE THURSDAY!

Prof DeBacker taught us valuable life lessons in this class - apart from teaching us how to do real math, he inspired me to switch my wardrobe to 70% math tshirts and gives the best mathematical marital advice a college student ever needs (if I end up in a long, happy marriage and make bank with math, I'm naming my firstborn Stephen)

The best professor I've ever had. He really cares about students and I learned a lot in his office hours.

Super interesting class. He always breaks for "joke time" which is nice.

I could not recommend this class more to somebody who is passionate about mathematics. As Debacker himself once told us, "Staying up all night doing math homework is one of the greatest pleasures in life". There is a generous floor grade, which allows you to focus on understanding your work and putting in your own efforts rather than a grade.

350 characters cannot possibly begin to describe the greatness of Stephen Debacker, so I won't even try.

No review can truly do Debacker (God incarnate) justice. His love of math is infectious, his passion for student success palpable, and his brilliance unrivaled. These qualities manifest themselves in arrestingly compelling lectures that will continuously blow your mind. Its not easy but the pain is worth it once you realize how much you've learned.

If you love math, you'll love him. If you hate math, you might hate him, and yourself for taking this class.

Professor DeBacker is an amazing teacher. He's incredibly brilliant and great at explaining the material. However, he also has a sharp wit and a biting sense of sarcasm, so lets just say there's never a dull moment. Great atmosphere, would take again. WARNING: DO NOT take this course unless you really, REALLY love math.

Stephen is a great professor. Enough said.

Told me there was a shower in East Hall after I told him I was spending too much time in East Hall. Now I live in East Hall. Good guy DeBacker.

While he can sound "mean" to some sentimental minds, he CARES about students and or we should say, mathematics so freaking much! Even though he sometimes called my proof crap, I love him as my professor so much that I wanna take honor with him(but I miss it). His explanation and elaboration always gives me a-ha moment which books cannot give. GREAT

He's a good reason for an undergrad to choose UM math dept over almost any other. He treats students with respect by holding them to a high standard. His lectures are exquisite: well-prepared, logically ordered, and very challenging. He may be the greatest of all time (GOAT) undergrad prof. I feel very fortunate that I could take 295-6 with him.

Best professor I have ever had! This is a really tough course, though. You need to go to office hours and attend every lecture to do well in this class. You're class notes are beyond important, as he doesn't use Spivak much but to assign a few problems. Highly recommend to take any class with DeBacker. Also, beware of 'Tom'!

I knew what I was getting myself into with Math 295. I learned a great deal and I really enjoyed Dr. Debacker, but in the end, I was spending 20 hours a week on homework and not getting it done, so I dropped the class. Even so, Dr. Debacker let me keep coming to class so I could keep learning.

I can't possibly summarize DeBacker in so few characters, but what I can say is that he is incredibly inspirational. I am constantly awed by his work in the math department. Due to some personal difficulties this fall, I couldn't finish 295, but I fully intend to take 297 if I get the chance.

I love this man

Very difficult class, but DeBacker is an incredible professor.

Stephen was one of my favorite parts of my summer semester. I got paired with a group who did absolutely nothing, but he let us redo our presentation so we didn't fail. His feedback of my work and stories about his life are part of the reason I chose my major. He's funny, and wise. One of the best profs UofM has to offer.

Not recommended for ophidiophobiacs.

DeBacker makes a hard class enjoyable. He is a great guy and manages to engage with and captivate an 8am calc 3 class. He spends a lot of time with the theory of the math and less time on examples but overall a phenomenal lecturer.

He's a very energetic and funny guy, but he goes very fast with some concepts that I lose track often. But I still enjoyed going to his class more than my own professor's

MATH 201 is a 1-credit intro to proofs class. Take this class if you're in MATH 217 or any proof-based class (CS majors who hate EECS 203, take this to make your life easier). Stephen is a great instructor, the worksheets are phenomenal, and managed to make spending two hours in the math lab every Monday and Tuesday enjoyable.

Stop in the middle of a lecture to tell a jock. Conveys course content in a clear and concise manner.

To some people Prof. Debacker comes off as dry and boring, but he's still a very good teacher. He gives his students an intuitive understanding of what they're learning rather than forcing you to memorize. He usually does this by giving a very brief proof of everything he teaches, and is very good at explaining things.

crystal clear lectures (maybe a bit too boring for those not mathematically-minded, but it was perfect for me). A very funny person also, giving us jokes before and after each lecture.

For 215, Smolkin was my lecturer, but during the strike Debacker (the head prof) took over and my understanding of the content increased exponentially. If you get the chance to have him as your main instructor, take it. But, he did make 215 a challenge; I had to work really hard all semester.

Professor DeBacker is simply the best. He was the organizer for my Math 215 class and he created pre lecture videos that helped introduce concepts very well, and also had a pun in each which honestly helped get through the lectures. He was also a substitute during the GSI strikes, so he cares for his students, and responds very quickly to emails.

From what I have heard this course is Debacker's brainchild born only just in 2019. Debacker organized the materials very well. He is very rigorous but helpful when he reviews your writings. His overall personality is certainly a plus. I learnt a great deal and it is mostly stress-free. Definitely take this before your proof-based math.

Debacker organized this course very well. He made it informational yet still manageable. Show up, do the worksheets, and there is no way for you to fail. He is very rigorous when reviewing your writings, but provides a lot of feedback to make sure you can get it right. Personality is a plus. Learnt a lot, take this before your proof-based math.

(Summer 2021, Online, Synchronous) MATH 201 is an extremely helpful class to take alongside any proof-heavy math class, or even by itself. Prof Debacker may seem intimidating at the beginning, but he really cares about his students and his subject. I would strongly recommend him and MATH 201, and would probably even take this class again.

There is simply no way I can summarize Professor Debacker in such short words. Absolutely incredible. Gem of a class. Hilarious personal stories. The joke is that we dont get the jokes (jk). Theres even a saying about him in Africa. DO NOT be afraid to take this class. Made me decide on a math major. Definitely life changing. #debackersimp

If every math prof was like DeBacker we would have solved the Riemann hypothesis by now: crazy smart and understanding, kind and a wonderful lecturer. This class is 20 hours of hw a week. You will leave feeling accomplished and tired. Go to office hours! If you don't like math you won't like 295 nor DeBacker. The contrapositive is true.

he is awesome. it was just A LOT of work. it is alright.

He is very great and if it rains you can watch princess bride and also our class was outside and we made an airplane out of the classroom chairs and blackboards

Debacker is the best professor I have ever had, full stop. Do whatever you can to take 295-296.

Bro is him

This is probably the hardest class I've ever taken and made me question whether I've ever been good at math, but then I got an A- so I guess it was fine? Prof. DeBacker is kind and helpful, but no-nonsense, and disappointingly, the lectures are not recorded and the lecture notes are not great, so if you miss lecture you might be in trouble.

Prof DeBacker is incredibly well-respected, and for good reason! He gives great advice and makes lots of math jokes. Definitely felt like I came out of each class with new perspectives and growth. You definitely need to attend class regularly to stay on track (the textbook is loosely followed). Overall, I would highly recommend him!

Debacker is, without a doubt, the greatest math professor I have ever had. 295 will test you harder than any class you've ever been in before, but if you can endure the massive workload and sheer quantity of information, you will emerge with an unbelievable level of mathematical understanding and ability. All hail king Stephen!

DeBacker was one of the best math professors I've had. The class is tough, and I wish I'd found the Math 201 worksheet sooner, but his lectures made the material much easier to understand; he took time to ensure everyone understood the material. My only complaint is that, at times, he can come off as condescending if you don't know everything.