Wei Feng

Wei Feng is Professor of Mathematics at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW), where she has served on the faculty since 1988. Over three decades at UNCW, she has distinguished herself as a scholar, educator, mentor, academic leader, and contributor to the international mathematical community. Her honors include the UNCW Distinguished Faculty Scholar Award and the UNCW Graduate Mentor Award, along with multiple Exemplary Post-Tenure Reviews. She has also been nominated for the Council of Southern Graduate Schools Outstanding Mentor Award and the Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award.

Dr. Feng’s research includes real and functional analysis, ordinary and partial differential equations, dynamical systems, traveling waves, reaction–diffusion systems, and mathematical modeling in biology, ecology, and physiology. Her work has appeared in leading journals such as Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Applications, Nonlinear Analysis, Applicable Analysis, Discrete and Continuous Dynamical Systems, and Communications on Pure and Applied Analysis. Her recent research focuses on competition models, traveling waves, coexistence, and Allee effects.
She has mentored 32 UNCW master’s theses and projects, as well as numerous undergraduate and Summer Ventures students, guiding them to publish their research in peer-reviewed journals, present at professional conferences, and earn distinguished academic recognitions.

Dr. Feng has provided extensive academic leadership at UNCW, including eight years as Department Chair, as well as service as Graduate Coordinator and Assistant Chair. She is an Associate Editor of Communications on Pure and Applied Analysis and Journal of Applied Analysis and Computation, edited proceedings and played major organizational roles at international conferences.

Education

• Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics, North Carolina State University, August 1988.
• B.S. in Mathematics, Huazhong University of Science &Technology, China, January 1982.
• BRIDGES, Academic Leadership for Women, UNC Chapel Hill, Class of 1999.

Specialization in Teaching

MAJOR COURSES TAUGHT AT UNC WILMINGTON

• MAT161-162, Calculus with Analytical Geometry I and II
• MAT 361, Differential Equations
• MAT 311, Intermediate Analysis
• MAT 495, Undergraduate Senior Seminar (Capstone)
• MAT 491 Directed Independent Study (Undergraduate)
• MAT 499 Honors Work in Mathematics (Undergraduate)
• MAT411/511, Real Analysis I
• MAT412/512, Real Analysis II
• MAT 415/515, Introduction to Complex Variables
• MAT 463/563 Ordinary Differential Equations
• MAT 467/567 Introduction to Mathematical Biology
• MAT 591 Directed Independent Study (Graduate)
• MAT592 Special Topics on Partial Differential Equations
• MAT 595, Graduate Seminar (Capstone)
• MAT 596 Graduate Project
• MAT599 Graduate Thesis
• Advisor of 22 Master's theses, 10 Master’s projects, 3 Honors theses, 5 graduate summer research projects, and 20 senior projects in Mathematics at UNCW, numerous DIS works and thesis committee memberships.
• 14 joint research publications with students on refereed media, 12 research talks and 5 posters presented by students at regional, national and international conferences, 22 poster presentations at UNCW Student Research and Creativity Showcase, resulting from directed graduate and undergraduate research projects.
• One student won the Walt and Susan Patterson Prize for Outstanding Presentation from Mathematical Association of America (Southeastern Section). Two students won the Best Poster Award at the UNCG Annual Mathematics and Statistics Conference. Two students’ CSURF poster presentations won awards at the Mathematics and Statistics Department Student Poster Contest.
• Two undergraduate Honors Works in Mathematics won the UNCW Undergraduate Research Fellowship.
• Two graduate students won the Graduate Student Achievement Award from UNCW Graduate School.
• 5 student research projects funded by Summer Research Grant, UNCW Graduate School.
• An undergraduate Honors Work won a Special Award at the Student Paper Competition by SIAM.

Research Interests

Real and Functional Analysis, Ordinary and Partial Differential Equations, Dynamical Systems and Traveling Wave Solutions, Reaction-diffusion Systems with Time Delays, Mathematical modeling in Chemistry, physiology, Biology and Ecology.

• Wei Feng, Xin Lu and Karen Ward, “On Models of Shared Resource Competition, Coexistence and Traveling Waves”, Mathematical Biosciences and Engineering, Vol. 23. 22-39 (2026).
• Yaw Chang, Wei Feng, Michael Freeze, Xin Lu and Charles Smith, “Elimination, permanence, and exclusion in a competition model under Allee effects”, AIMS Mathematics, Volume 8, Issue 4: 7787-7805 (2023).
• Wei Feng, Michael Freeze and Xin Lu, “On Competition Models Under Allee Effect: Asymptotic Behavior and Traveling Waves”, Communications on Pure and Applied Analysis, Volume 19, Issue 12, 5609-5626 (2020).
• Weihua Ruan, Wei Feng and Xin Lu, “Wavefront Solutions of Quasilinear Reaction-Diffusion Systems with Mixed Quasi-Monotonicity”, Applicable Analysis, Volume 98, Issue 5, 934-968 (2019).
• Weihua Ruan, Wei Feng and Xin Lu, “On Traveling Wave Solutions in General Reaction-Diffusion System with Time Delays”, Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Applications, Vol. 448, No.1, 376-400 (2017).
• Wei Feng, Weihua Ruan and Xin Lu, “On Existence of Wavefront Solutions in Mixed Monotone Reaction-Diffusion Systems”, Discrete and Continuous Dynamical Systems Series B, Volume 21, No. 3, 815-836 (2016).
• Wei Feng and Xin Lu, “Traveling Waves and Competitive Exclusion in Models of Resource Competition and Mating Interference”, Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Applications, Vol. 424, No.1, 542-562 (2015).
• Yaw Chang, Wei Feng, Michael Freeze and Xin Lu, “Permanence and Coexistence in a Diffusive Complex Ratio-dependent Food Chain”, International Journal of Dynamics and Control, Volume 3, No. 3, 262-274 (2015).

Professional Service

1. Associate Editor, Communications in Pure and Applied Analysis (SCI), 2005-present.
2. Associate Editor, Journal of Applied Analysis and Computation (SCI), 2010-present.
3. Invited Issue Editor on a special issue of Discrete and Continuous Dynamical Systems - Series S (DCDS-S) entitled “Analysis and Computations on Differential Equations and Dynamical Systems”, 2012-2013.
4. Issue Editor on a Theme Issue “Dynamical Systems and Applications in Engineering and Biology”, Communications on Pure and Applied Analysis, 2008-2010.
5. Editor, Dynamical systems and differential equations, Proceedings of the AIMS 4th-10th International Conferences, 2002-2014.
6. Organization Committee and Coordinator of AIMS International Student Paper Contest, International Conference on Dynamical Systems and Differential Equations, 2014-2026.
7. Four NSF grant awards for supporting graduate students and young researchers participating at International Conference on Dynamical Systems and Differential Equations, 2002-2014.
8. Organizer of the Special Session titled “Qualitative theory of differential equations and applications” at the 10th International Conference on Dynamical Systems and Differential Equations, held in Madrid, Spain, July 7-11, 2014.
9. Organizer of the Special Session titled “Analysis and Simulations of Nonlinear System” and the Contributed Session titled “Modelling and Math Biology” at the 9th International Conference on Dynamical Systems and Differential Equations, held in Orlando, Florida, July 1-5, 2012.
10. Organizer of the Special Session titled “Reaction Diffusion, Wave Propagation, and Mathematical Biology” at the Fifth World Congress of Nonlinear Analysts (WCNA-2008), held in Orlando, Florida, July 2-9, 2008.
11. Education and Outreach Committee, Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute (SAMSI), 2001-2010.
12. Session Chair of AMS Session on Differential Equations, at the Annual Meeting of the American Mathematical Society, 1995.

Community Engagement

Faculty Instructor and Research Mentor for “Mathematical Modeling through Differential and Difference Equations”, North Carolina Summer Ventures 2019-2023.
Coach of MathCounts Team at Roland Grise Middle School, Wilmington, NC.
Coach of North Carolina High School Math Contest Team at Hoggard High School, Wilmington, NC.
Volunteer at Science Olympiad.

Honors & Awards

• Nominated by Dean of UNCW Graduate School for the CSGS (Council of Southern Graduate School) Outstanding Mentor Award, October 2015.
• Graduate Mentor Award, University of North Carolina Wilmington, September 2015.
• Nominated by department chair, colleagues and students for the Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award, January 2014 and January 2018.
• Exemplary (Exceeding Expectations) Post-Tenure Review, University of North Carolina Wilmington, May 2012, 2017, and 2022.
• Distinguished Faulty Scholar Award, University of North Carolina Wilmington, September 2010.