Devin Dixon has completed seven marathons and an ultramarathon. Photo by B.A. Rupert
Like any dedicated marathon runner, Devin Dixon knows how important it is to keep a steady pace. But judging from the way he’s speeding through three S&T degrees in just over six years, you’d think he was a sprinter.
Dixon double-majored in civil and architectural engineering, earning both bachelor’s degrees in May 2011. He stuck around to pursue a master’s in civil with an emphasis in geotechnical engineering.
Working with Dr. Ronaldo Luna, Dixon has conducted research on the Foothills Parkway Bridge project in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Specifically, he has monitored the performance of load-transfer mechanisms in the micropiles of one of the bridges, located near Pidgeon Forge, Tenn. Micropiles are devices used to secure bridge foundations into the ground.
The great outdoors has always attracted Dixon. When he was a boy, the Edwardsville, Ill., native dreamed of becoming a paleontologist. “I watched Jurassic Park constantly and I had a bunch of dinosaur toys,” he says.
Dixon was involved in the Student Union Board, serving as director of SUB’s Outdoor Activity Rental in 2007. He was also active in his fraternity, Sigma Chi, throughout his time at S&T.
“Fraternity life was really a positive influence on my life,” he says. “It allowed me to branch out and develop myself as a well-rounded man.”
And he has continued his running while at S&T. He’s completed seven marathons and, in April 2012, his first ultramarathon — a 50-mile race called the Frisco Fifty, held in Willard, Mo.
By Andrew Careaga
More about graduate studies at Missouri S&T.
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