Award Honorees

Timothy Dawson ‘08 is a marketing professional who has worked for retail companies like Target and, most recently, the Bluebird Group. He has also given back to MHS by volunteering with the VANTAGE professional studies program.

Dawson grew up in Minnetonka school district and feels that the community, as well as the many resources and opportunities he experienced there, helped prepare him for his career. “I think that it was great to have the benefits of a big community ,while still feeling like I had people to go to in a tight-knit and inclusive way,” Dawson said.

Dawson graduated from Minnetonka High School in 2008, and went on to pursue his bachelors at University of Minnesota, Duluth. While there, he joined an extracurricular group that focused on marketing analytics for retail, which helped connect him to the industry. He earned an internship with Target through a case study that he worked on at his college, which then led to his being offered a position after he graduated.

While he was working at Target, Dawson decided to reach out to Matt Breen, a teacher at MHS whom Dawson knew from his time as a student. Over the next several years, Dawson helped to lead multiple case studies through Target.

When COVID-19 happened, he left Target to work for a smaller retail services firm called the Bluebird Group. After the switch, Dawson continued to create a connection between VANTAGE and the Bluebird group. Dawson hopes to see his relationship with VANTAGE continue grow into the future and plans to continue his support for Minnetonka students.

Dawson's advice to current high school students is to simply enjoy it. “Enjoy the opportunities and take advantage of them,” Dawson said. “Take your time. There are so many things that happen after high school, and since you have such good resources and friends and counselors to lean on as you are making those big decisions, it can be really helpful. Try your best, keep moving forwards, remember where help is needed, and if you do need help, know where to get it from. There is plenty of fun and hard work and opportunities to be had in the meantime!”