OWL UPDATE ■
When Stars Align
Lydia Nixon, ’13, M.S. ’17
A Southern love story paves the way to two doctorates. By Beth Levine
Of
course, it had to be famed scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson who ultimately brought Lydia and Charles Nixon together. The two had met years before as undergraduates in Southern’s Honors College, a program for academically gifted students. They shared an interest in astronomy, but had never been more than good friends. Neither anticipated that a fateful date to hear the American astrophysicist speak would lead to them marrying and both becoming Ph.D. candidates at North Dakota State University (NDSU). It all started when Lydia enrolled at Southern. Her family had a strong connection to the university and the humanities. Lydia’s mother Linda Olson, was an associate professor of world languages and literatures who taught French, and her father Alan Friedlander was a professor of history. (The two retired in 2014 with emeritus status.) Lydia, who wanted to study the sciences, found Southern was a great place to explore. “Originally, I was pre-med, but then I was so inspired by Professor Valerie Andrushko that I switched to anthropology with a biological anthropology focus,” she says. Professor Andrushko encouraged Lydia to 34 | Southern ALUMNI MAGAZINE
apply to two summer internships in Lisbon, Portugal, where she studied bones and bone fragments from Neolithic archeological sites. She also did a semester in Sweden because, well, why not? She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in anthropology with minors in geography and biology. Although they are the same age, Charles had taken a year off after high school. He joined the Honors College as a freshman when Lydia was a sophomore. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to pursue. He tried different academic subjects — including French with his future mother-in-law. In the end, his interest in astronomy led him to a Bachelor of Science in earth science (geology concentration) with minors in French and environmental science. Charles also gives a shout out to his Southern mentors for their support and nurturing: “I did my honors thesis in my minor of environmental science with Dr. Vincent Breslin, professor of environment, geography, and marine sciences. He was a big inspiration. [The late] James Tait, associate professor of science education and environmental studies; Thomas Fleming, professor of earth science; and Cynthia R. Coron, professor emeritus, in geology, were also big influences on me.” Each of the Nixons feel they got a great amount of individual attention that helped them flourish despite such
