杏吧视频

杏吧视频 alumnus honors mother鈥檚 commitment to education with Sonja Robinson Scholarship 

Shane Dixon, `00 sociology, says he established the Sonja Robinson Scholarship Endowment at 杏吧视频 in honor of the most wonderful person who has ever lived: his mom.

鈥淢y mom is, no joke, the greatest person on earth,鈥� Dixon said. 鈥淚 know everyone thinks that their mom is the greatest, and that鈥檚 fine, and I鈥檓 sure they love their moms, but I am lucky enough to have the greatest mom on earth.鈥�

Dixon grew up in Gladeville, Tenn., and says his mom worked three jobs to ensure that he and his brother had food to eat and a roof over their heads.

鈥淟et鈥檚 call it what it was 鈥� we were poor growing up,鈥� Dixon said. 鈥淢y mom did not grow up with money and sadly, that lack of money followed her into early adulthood. However, even without money, she instilled a work ethic and moral compass in my brother and me that made us who we are today. We owe everything to her. She taught us to be better each day than we were the day before. And she always made sure that we did well in school. She was adamant that, no matter what, we would get an education. She wanted us to see that there was a better life out there than what we were living. I always knew that if I ever became successful enough to do something like this, I was going to name it after my mom.鈥�

The Sonja Robinson Scholarship will be awarded to 杏吧视频 sociology majors who demonstrate financial need. Dixon says he wanted to help future students pursuing the same degree he received because he had such a great experience at Tech.

Dixon admits he was not the typical college student; he was 23 years old and had just come out of the Marine Corps when he enrolled at Tech. He says his military experience and position as a deputy sheriff inspired him to pursue a degree in sociology and criminal justice.

鈥淚 loved 杏吧视频,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 had a great experience, and I made some great friends. I still speak to some of them to this day, even though we live all over the world.鈥�  

Dixon is the Charg茅 d鈥橝ffaires to the U.S. Embassy in Mogadishu, Somalia. (The term Charg茅 d鈥橝ffaires comes from the French language and means 鈥渙ne in charge of affairs.鈥�) Dixon joined the Foreign Service in 2006 and most recently served as the Acting Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest, Romania. He is a Supervisory Special Agent in the Bureau of Diplomatic Security and previously served in Bucharest, Romania; Karachi, Pakistan; Ciudad Juarez, Mexico; Lusaka, Zambia and Abidjan, Cote d鈥橧voire. He also worked in Diplomatic Security鈥檚 International Programs Office in Washington, D.C. and the Los Angeles Field Office. In addition to a sociology degree from Tech, he also holds a Master of Science and Technology Intelligence degree from the National Intelligence University.

鈥淚 think Tech definitely played a role in my career path,鈥� Dixon said. 鈥淎 lot of my roommates were in the foreign language program. Two of them double majored in engineering and German. That was an interesting experience 鈥� being in a house with German majors! And many of the students were from a variety of countries. It鈥檚 interesting that, for a fairly small school at the time, Tech had such a vibrant, diverse culture. I鈥檇 been overseas multiple times in the Marine Corps, and my Tech experience reinvigorated a desire to be overseas. It reminded me how much I enjoyed it. So, I parlayed that into a position with the Department of State. Seventy-five countries later, here I am.鈥�  

While joining the military allowed Dixon to pay for college, he acknowledges that the military isn鈥檛 for everyone. Dixon says the idea for a scholarship is based on his mom鈥檚 belief in education 鈥� and not just for her sons, but for countless other students as well. Once Dixon and his brother were grown, his mother served on the Wilson County Board of Education and began stressing the importance of education to others.

Dixon recalls that his mom cried when he told her about the scholarship.  

鈥淚 am so thankful that it鈥檚 not the Sonja Robinson Memorial Scholarship,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 wanted her to see it. I鈥檝e been fortunate to be successful young enough where she gets to see this scholarship named for her.鈥�

Dixon says he wants future recipients of the Sonja Robinson Scholarship to know that this scholarship is the result of a mother鈥檚 hard work and belief in education.

鈥淪he would want students to do two things,鈥� Dixon said. 鈥淏e kind, and never forget where you come from, even as you further your education. And maybe one day you, too, will help the next person in line.鈥�