by Leah Jackson
A scholarship honoring the life of Coach Matthew Brian Dodson has been established through the Northwestern State University Foundation. Preference for the one-year scholarship will be given to students from southwest Louisiana, particularly those from Grand Lake High School, where Dodson spent most of his career. Preference will also be given to a senior member of the baseball team playing without an athletic scholarship and to a student battling cancer or who is a cancer survivor or the son or daughter of someone who has battled cancer. Preference will also be given to students majoring in education, those who are NSU cheerleaders and graduate students obtaining degrees in education leadership.
Dodson, 58, passed away April 25, 2020, at Ochsner LSU Health Center in Shreveport, after a long and extraordinary life.
Dodson graduated in 1980 from Leesville High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in education from McNeese State University in 1986. He graduated from The University of Phoenix in 2012 with a master’s degree in educational administration and supervision, and obtained an additional plus 30 hours for coursework completed at McNeese.
Dodson, also known as “Coach,” was a retired teacher and coach who spent 22 years teaching special education in Cameron Parish and 11 years teaching and coaching in Natchitoches Parish. He worked as a real estate agent for Cane Heritage Realty and was a university site supervisor for Northwestern State University. Dodson was a member of Word of Grace Ministries in Pineville. He was an honorary member of Theta Chi at Northwestern State and known as a local Natchitoches local handyman.
Dodson was a two-time cancer survivor that never wavered in his faith in Jesus Christ. After being diagnosed with cancer for a third time, his response to his two children that he adored was, “I’m not going out without a fight,” and as always, he did just that.
Friends are invited to contribute to the Coach Dodson Memorial Scholarship by visiting http://www.northwesternstatealumni.com/coach-dodson-memorial-scholarship/
Visit Northwestern State University Website: https://www.nsula.edu/
