Dr. Georgina Dodge, who is associate provost for diversity, equity and inclusion at Bucknell University, likes to say that she was “born and raised in the Air Force.”
Her father served in the military for 21 years and once she turned 18, Dodge enlisted into the Navy as an electronics technician.
“No one believes me when I say I was a bit of a wild child, but I was,” says Dodge in an interview with Diverse. “I kind of needed to do something with myself.”
Her two primary duty stations were in Atsugi, Japan and Alameda, California. She also attended a variety of training schools in order to help prepare her for the use of cryptographic and meteorological equipment.
Though she grew up a military brat, being directly involved in the military changed her perspective as she was able to develop a number of life skills that would later become handy when she transitioned into academia.
“I got a lot out of my experience in the military including, of course, things that I certainly needed as a youngster,” says Dodge. “The ability to develop discipline, drive, resilience and responsibility. All of those types of things were pretty important and I think still serve me well.”
Being a woman in a male-dominated field was sometimes challenging for Dodge. Though many men, who she worked with, were simply focused on their job, others were “patronizing.”
