Cezanne Shannon

Cezanne, her husband, Dedrick, and their three kids now make their home in Guymon, but they originally found their way to the Panhandle area from their hometown area of Chicago, Ill. The Shannon family quickly became members of the Aggie family as Dedrick accepted a position as the Assistant Men’s Basketball Coach.

“Coming from a big city, it was an adjustment to move to such a small, secluded area. After three years, I have grown to love the Panhandle! It has been a great place to raise my family. As for OPSU, I feel it was all a part of Gods plan to bring us here for my husband and now, for me. Being in higher education has always been on my radar and I am blessed to have the opportunity early on in my career to grow as an Aggie with great mentors such as Shawna Tucker and Sarah Green to lead me along the way!”

Cezanne attended Governor’s State University earned a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education in 2015. In 2017, she completed her Master of Education in SPED and ESL in 2016 from National Louis University. In 2017, she earned her Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from National Louis University. Prior to teaching at Panhandle State, Cezanne was a sixth grade math teacher at North Park Elementary in Guymon, Okla.

Her favorite thing about Panhandle State is the students. “At first, I wasn’t sure how to connect with the college students and draw the line at being an instructor. However, after my first day, I realized they were students just the same. They need me to teach, mentor and motivate. I enjoy having conversations about life with them that I hope will stick with them.”

While she currently teaches predominately freshmen in an algebraic modeling and basic statistics course, Cezanne’s goals include continuing to learn and grow as a college instructor. “I would like to teach another math class and eventually teach education method courses also.”

Her passion for math goes far beyond her classroom at Panhandle State as she does private tutoring for elementary and high school kids each weekday.

“I was never a straight A student, unless it was in math. It has always been my favorite subject! I come from a line of teachers and I knew I wanted to be involved with student growth and academic development. I also wanted to make one of the most hated subjects (math) a subject that should be appreciated and fun.”

With any rare free time, Cezanne enjoys playing volleyball, basketball, and doing CrossFit as well as cooking.