27 Oct 2021

Faculty Personnel Committee

Pat White
Charles Bullock
UMass Global

Dear Promotion Committee:

I am writing this letter of recommendation for the promotion of Dr. Nicholson to Associate
Professor with the greatest of enthusiasm. Dr. Nicholson brings deep expertise, hard work, and
exemplary collegiality to all she does in her position as Assistant Professor in the Special
Education Department in the School of Education. As the Associate Dean overseeing the Special
Education department, and as an Education Specialist myself, I can personally attest the level of
knowledge and expertise Dr. Nicholson demonstrates in her work for the University. She is
continually learning best practices in the field and brings that knowledge to her course
development and instruction. Her courses are well-organized, accessible to students, and
exemplify UDL instruction, both in content and in the materials and assignments that keep
students well engaged, learning cooperatively, and demonstrating their knowledge and skills at
the highest level.

Dr. Nicholson provides excellent mentoring to the students, faculty and staff she works with.
She meets regularly with students providing clear guidance, including developing templates that
allow students to clearly understand what is expected in an assignment, and then meeting with
them as needed to provide further clarification and guidance. Her work with the MASE students
she oversees is particularly notable, as she guides and supports them through their five-chapter
Capstone Project. She works closely with the adjuncts teaching her courses, providing the
materials, information, and support they need to successfully teach the class, and ensure the
highest level of learning from their students.
Dr. Nicholson is dedicated, energetic, and highly collaborative in the service she provides both
internally to the university and externally to the community. She led the Special Education
department through planning the new program to meet new Commission on Teacher
Credentialing standards as Department Chair, worked on academic integrity as part of her work
as a GAC member, and served the SOE’s technology needs through her work on the technology
committee. To assist students in meeting requirements for observations and fieldwork, Dr.
Nicholson created a Professional Learning Committee where she invited faculty from programs

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across the university to conduct webinars and hold discussions that would allow students to
receive their credentials in a timely manner as outlined on their Ed Plans. The webinars she
conducted personally as part of this PLC were well-received by students and faculty alike. While
engaging in this important internal service, Dr. Nicholson still managed to author three
published, peer-reviewed journal articles based on studies she has conducted, written a chapter
in a textbook and provided valuable work and insight as part of the State Leadership Team for
the CEEDAR project – a federally funded, nationwide organization for Educator Preparation
Programs.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not extoll Dr. Nicholson’s excellent collegiality and collaboration
in all she does. She brings a positive, can-do attitude to everything she does, and works well
with everyone. She builds strong relationships among the members of the teams and
committees she works on and can parlay those relationships to collaboratively create exemplary
programs, policies, courses and communities that excellently serve the needs of the university
and the wider community. I have been so fortunate and grateful to have Dr. Nicholson as a
member of the Special Education team and appreciate all she does for the team and the
University.

Sincerely,

Anne Spillane
Anne Spillane
Associate Dean, SOE

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