EWS Professor Honored with Local High School Award

Sandy Dixon, assistant professor of the ethnic and women’s studies department, has been honored with Sherman Indian High School’s Golden Eagle Award.

The high school, an off-reservation boarding school for Native Americans, presented Dixon with the award for building an academic bridge between the high school and the wider Riverside community.

Dixon, who taught for 16 years at the high school before coming to Cal Poly Pomona, continues to volunteer at the school, teaching a native voices and music appreciation class. Twice a week, students explore a variety of Native American cultures through reading and writing exercises.

“We have a Cal Poly Pomona office on site, and I have the opportunity to meet with students to encourage and share the value of a college degree,” says Dixon, who worked with the university’s Office of Admissions & Outreach to develop her off-site classroom.

“I truly enjoy the one-on-one interaction with the students. It has always been my passion to encourage our Native Americans that you can come to college and graduate with a degree that allows them to give back to their communities.”

Sherman Indian High School is located in Riverside and is co-operated by the Bureau of Indian Education and the U.S. Department of the Interior.