Communicator of the Year Award

Dr. Regina A. Dixon-Reeves, Jour ’82
San Diego, Calif.

Be The Difference: Dr. Regina Dixon-Reeves has made Marquette’s tagline her life’s mission. Since graduation, she has worked to leave the world a better place than she found it. As the vice provost for diversity, equity and inclusion at the University of San Diego, Regina strives to increase access to higher education and to support the success of traditionally underrepresented populations of people.

Regina is energized by working in higher education, which she traces back to her Marquette experience. She recalls taking sociology classes with Dr. Carol Y. Boone-Smith, whose teaching style inspired Regina. Regina says, “Her classes were electric, creative and made me feel included/seen in the learning process. I had never seen anyone so animated in the classroom.”

Regina’s path to Marquette began in Woodlawn in Chicago, a community devastated by riots after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was killed. Regina was one of only two kids in her neighborhood group who went on to graduate college. She says they were not smarter than the other kids, but they had parents who valued education and pushed them to pursue college. Regina’s experience provided the foundation for her to give back to students today, showing them the transformative power of a college education.

Regina demonstrates servant leadership by working daily to empower her colleagues, constantly trying to ensure that students, faculty and staff reach their potential and pursue their dreams. Regina credits Marquette with enabling her to be a change agent: “My life is different because I got a degree from a liberal arts college with a commitment to a life of service.”

Fun Facts:

Name someone (past or present) with whom you’d like to have dinner.

I would LOVE to have dinner with my mother, Minnie L. Dixon. She passed in 2001, about a month after watching me receive my doctorate. I would love to be able to share this accomplishment with her.

What is one of your favorite Marquette memories?

I earned 3 Ds my first semester at Marquette. I was stunned. I had only ever received an occasional B throughout my entire grade school and high school tenure. Who knew that you had to attend class and study to get good grades in college?! I knew that I needed to turn things around immediately because I wanted not only to stay at Marquette, but I wanted to graduate from Marquette. Sande Robinson in the Educational Opportunity Program was the lifeline that I needed. I remember her sitting me down to talk to me about my poor performance and her telling me that I was much smarter than my grades reflected and asking me why I was trying to pretend to be something I wasn’t. She put me in a mandated study hall and began to check in with me regularly. I was able to get off academic probation and the rest, as they say, is Her-story!