Ruth Nixon-Davy

Ruth Anderson Nixon-Davy was born in Ft. Dodge, Iowa. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota; an M.A. from the University of Iowa, and a Ph.D. from Florida State University. She had graduate work at Middlebury College, Purdue University, the University of Mexico, and the University of Guatemala. In her academic life, she was a teacher of Spanish in the high school of Fort Dodge, at Grosse Pointe, MI; Albion College, Albion, Michigan.

Dr. Nixon-Davy came to UWL in 1945 and retired as professor emeritus in 1984. She chaired the Foreign Language Department for many years, brought the national honorary fraternity of Sigma Delta Pi for Spanish students, and initiated an annual conference for foreign language teachers in this area. Ruth introduced the program initiated by a professor from Eau Claire to bring European college students to the campus for direct communication with the students. The first two were from France and Germany. She initiated the national honorary fraternity of Sigma Delta Pi for Spanish majors or minors. She was very active in the Teachers of Spanish of Wisconsin and the North Central Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese. Before she retired the Wisconsin Association of Foreign Language Teachers presented her with its Distinguished Foreign Language Teachers Award in 1984. When she retired, her students started a scholarship in her name at UWL.

Ruth passed away in 2014 at the age of 98.