SEMA Scholarship In Dick Dixon's Name

Plans to Institute a SEMA Scholarship In Dick Dixon's Name Announced Late Educator Was Active in Automotive Curriculum

November 26, 2012 - - Plans have been put in motion to institute a SEMA Memorial scholarship in the name of Dick Dixon, long time SEMA member and educator from La Verne, California who lectured at Cal State University San Bernardino, and who championed higher education for young people who wanted a future in the automotive and related industries.

Dixon passed away on November 15 after waging a tough battle with cancer. Even as the disease had him in great pain, he spent some of the last days of his life among colleagues, friends, and students at the annual SEMA Show meetings in Las Vegas.

"He was there to see his friends, and to pass the baton on in his way." Pat McInturff Professor Emeritus in the Department of Management at San Bernardino told us. "He was weak, but every student, every friend that he spoke to about his ideas for new projects buoyed him up. He never allowed the conversation to become about himself and his problems; it was all about the future, the students."

"Dick was more than a colleague," said McInturff, "He was an inspiration for all of us, he truly enjoyed teaching and he particularly loved helping students to understand the value that a solid business education would have in their future in the automotive industry."

Dixon came to formal teaching somewhat later in life, a lifelong motorsports junkie, an open-wheel racing driver in his youth, a magazine publisher, writer, and skillful organizer; he was involved in countless facets of the automotive business throughout his life. He touched hundreds of lives in hundreds of different ways, but it always his boundless enthusiasm that his friends will remember and miss most of all.

More details about this very special scholarship will be available soon.

At Dick's request there was no funeral, and his wife Judi has asked that friends and associates remember Dick by contributing to this scholarship.

Contributions should be made directly to SEMA. Checks should be made out to: SEMA Memorial Fund earmarked: "Dick Dixon" and sent to: 1575 S. Valley Vista Drive, Diamond Bar, CA 91785-0910

The following is from the SEMA website:

Writer, educator and industry speaker Dick Dixon passed away in his sleep Thursday, November 15, after battling cancer. He lived by the philosophy that life was a sandbox from which to learn, work and play. He thought of himself as an unconventional get-it-done-right guy, who "worked like a 270 Offy."

Dixon grew up in Hawthorne, California, and earned his masters degree in management and marketing at California State University Dominguez Hills. Most recently, he was the director of the International Motorsports Alliance at California State University, San Bernardino and chairman of the Automotive Trades Institute. Dixon was a lifelong automotive and motorsports enthusiast and 30-year member of the aftermarket and motorsports industry.

A three-time SEMA Ambassador of the Year and Motorsports Legends Hall of Fame inductee, Dixon received numerous industry awards and spoke at industry events nationally. He authored the Cal State/SEMA-endorsed aftermarket management and marketing education certificate program and served on the SEMA Scholarship Committee for 13 years. Dixon was a former professor and motorsports administrator at Indiana and Purdue Universities. He was also managing editor and publisher of the Hot Rod Parts Guide and chairman and CEO of the Automotive Education Alliance.

Dixon actively participated in SEMA's ARMO, HRIA, YEN, and SBN councils. He was also a SEMA-endorsed educator of automotive management and was a featured speaker on eCommerce at the SEMA Show.