This past weekend (1/11) Gulf social studies teacher Jennifer Dixon traveled “home” to Oakmont, Pennsylvania, to be inducted as a Distinguished Alumna of Riverview High School, from which she graduated in 1995.
Her high school bestowed this honor on 8 of its alumni this year. The inductees are two accomplished teachers, the 20th American woman to summit Mt. Everest, a leading ceramics artist, a retired FBI agent who is now a lawyer, and leaders in business in the areas of taxation, actuarial sciences, and technology innovation.
(Fun fact: the 20th American woman to climb Mt. Everest is Pamela Pappas. She graduated a few years before Ms. Dixon and she also lives in the Tampa area.)
After graduating high school, Ms. Dixon studied at California University of Pennsylvania and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. While a student at CalU, she studied abroad in Greece, Turkey, and Italy during summers. After earning her first degree, she pursued Secondary Education courses at the University of Pittsburgh USF. She holds a Florida Professional Educator’s Certificate in Art K-12, Exceptional Student Education K-12, and Social Science 6-12. Additionally, she is certified by the British Council in TEFL/TESOL.
In July-August 2013 Ms. Dixon taught pedagogy and professional development courses to Chinese teachers of English at the Fujian Institute of Education in Fuzhou, China. She is a member of the Sino-American Bridge for Education and Health (SABEH), and will return to China in June 2014.
Congratulations, Ms. Dixon!
The photos below show Ms. Dixon with friends from high school and college, Ms. Dixon with the other teacher inductee, and Ms. Dixon giving her acceptance speech.
