Curriculum Development
Nicole Portzen Professional Career:
- Eight years teaching Middle School English Language Arts and Social Studies
- Adjunct Professor at William Woods University teaching Early Childhood Education courses
- Teacher Consultant for the Missouri Writing Project Network, providing professional development around the state to teachers, administrators, and RPDC consultants regarding best practice for reading and writing instruction
- Nicole Portzen has almost completed her Ed.D. in Curriculum Leadership at Liberty University
Personal, Hobbies, In My Spare Time, Unique Facts:
- Mom to three, two boys and a girl
- I enjoy reading and writing in my free time. Memoirs are my favorite, mysteries are a close second
- I am a horse lover and enjoy riding when I can. We currently gentle and re-home wild mustangs. We are also in the process of writing grants for a retreat that will use equine therapy to provide healing for veterans, victims of abuse, and youth in foster care.
- I am an avid traveler. After graduating high school, I moved to Germany for a short time. I have also traveled to three different continents (as well as many states and Central America/the Caribbean islands) in all four hemispheres.
- I love to kayak, sew, hike, antique shop, and listen to live music
What I Love About School / The Profession of Education:
- How educators are always willing to learn and grow!
- The ability we have to connect with students, their families, and the community we serve
- The unique family we create within our own buildings and the relationships we develop
- I love seeing teachers get excited about teaching again after an amazing professional development opportunity, book study, or interaction with students or mentors!
Favorite Quotes:
- “Imagine the person you want to be. Think of what their daily life, habits, rituals, and routines would be. Start showing up to those habits and routines, start building them, step by step, and day by day. You don’t become them like magic. You build them. Start building” —Jamie Varon
- “You can’t start by helping the whole world, you have to start by helping your community.” —Lauren Cole
Favorite or Most Impactful Teacher Growing Up:
Dacia Rzchowski was my United States History teacher my senior year of high school. It was a dual credit course but unlike any I had taken before! She was TOUGH! But, the challenge was one of the most incredible in my academic life, we learned so much. We stretched ourselves, learned how to engage with the texts; evaluated, synthesized, analyzed, created. It reminds me now as an educator that engagement doesn’t always mean fun and games, it can mean hard work and difficult challenges!