Former music teacher Mary Dikes has joined the OEA staff as a teaching and learning specialist for the western side of the state and as a member of the Northwest Regional Team.
Dikes has a bachelor’s in vocal music, with a minor in psychology, from Phillips University in Enid, and a bachelor’s in vocal music education from Oklahoma State University in Stillwater.
She taught elementary music in Enid for 15 years prior to joining the OEA. After assignments at Eisenhower and Taft Elementaries, she taught music at Hayes Elementary. In addition to teaching pre-kindergarten through fifth graders during the day, she developed an afterschool music program that included an honor choir and a drum club.
Dikes also served as a mentor teacher and worked with students at the Enid Learning Academy, focusing primarily on improving their reading and math skills. Outside of school, she created and developed a community children’s chorus with three other colleagues.
Dikes was an active member of the Enid Education Association, serving as a building representative, on the organizing committee and on the bargaining team.
“I am looking forward to building relationships with teachers across Oklahoma and helping to empower them to build strong public schools,” Dikes said.
Mary and her son Kaleb, a high school junior, live in Enid.
