Belcher Named 2019 MECC Alumna of the Year

Alicia Belcher

Alicia Belcher

Big Stone Gap — Alicia Belcher, a resident of St. Paul and math teacher at Ridgeview High School, has been named MECC’s 2019 Alumna of the Year.

Belcher, a 2014 Summa Cum Laude graduate of MECC, earned an Associate’s Degree in Pre-Teacher Education. She began at MECC as a non-traditional college student, enrolling as a single mother in her thirties with only a high school education. After graduating from MECC, Belcher graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2015 from UVA-Wise, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences with a Concentration in Mathematics and Teaching Endorsements in PK-12, Special Education, Middle School Mathematics, and High School Mathematics.

In 2017, she graduated Summa Cum Laude from Aurora University, earning a Master’s Degree in Mathematics Education. She is currently in the dissertation sequence at Northcentral University where she will earn her PhD in Education with a specialization in Curriculum and Teaching in late 2019. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA in her graduate work.

Belcher currently teaches mathematics at Ridgeview High School in Dickenson County where she assists more than 40 at-risk youth earn high school diplomas. She is also an employee of UVA-Wise Upward Bound Program where she teaches at-risk youth in several mathematics classes and heads up several STEM projects.

Belcher formerly worked for nearly 12 years with local non-profit agencies serving at-risk youth, victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, and the local homeless population. Additionally, she is a GLOBE certified instructor in the areas of atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and pedosphere.

Previous years outstanding Alumni of the Year winners include, Dr. Patricia Vanhook, Faculty, East Tennessee State University; Dr. Amanda Graham, Online Instructor, Kaplan University; and Rohini Sampooman Swaminathan, United Nations Institute for Training and Research. For more information, contact the MECC Foundation at 276.523.7466 or visit www.meccfoundation.org.