Nichole Spencer, STEAM Coordinator for Phoenix College, was recognized this past week by the Arizona Capitol Times as a 2020 Breakdown Breakout recipient.
Each year, the Arizona Capitol Times honors those that have taken on the most challenging issues, and, in that process, established their credentials through hard work and persistence. As an Honoree, Nichole will be formally recognized in a virtual awards night on November 24th. She will also be profiled in a special edition of the Arizona Capitol Times.
Frank Marfai, STEAM colleague and Math Faculty at PC had this to say about Nichole: "I have been honored to work with Nichole Spencer as a colleague supporting the STEAM ecosystem. Her leadership in STEAM initiatives, her teaching in the STEAM field of Physics, her promoting of work-based experiences for students in STEAM disciplines, her building partnerships in the valley, and her work to support diversity and inclusion for underrepresented students in the STEAM fields are valued, appreciated, and noticed. She is a rock star, and we are privileged to have her at Phoenix College."
More about Nichole’s role and impact at PC:
Nichole has taught science and mathematics for 8 years at Phoenix College, a Title-I school in downtown Phoenix, and was recently recognized as the top-ten 2018 Arizona Teachers of the Year for her commitment to excellence in teaching. Nichole has since transitioned to a position with Phoenix College as the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) Coordinator, in which her primary work is to support students and faculty in the STEAM disciplines.
She has influenced students like Brenton Chase, a PC alum whom she helped get into a NASA Psyche-Inspired internship program, and Gabriela Hernandez, a current PC student, whom she guided and supported with the STEM-CURE grant to leverage and develop skills for future work-based experiences.
In addition, Nichole represented Phoenix College at the 2019 Project Kaleidoscope STEM Leadership Institute, a program dedicated to re-structuring institution systems to bring about social change in STEM and diversify the STEM workforce. She currently serves as personnel for the STEM-CURE grant funded by the NSF (1832543), assisting in the development of course-based undergraduate research experiences and managing the STEM-CURE student mentors. Further, Nichole serves on the Executive Board of STEMteachersPHX, a nationally-affiliated nonprofit organization dedicated to providing quality professional development opportunities for teachers in the fields of STEM.
We are more than proud to have Nichole be a part of the Phoenix College family and are happy for her recent nomination of the 2020 Breakdown Breakout award. Please show her your support and send a congratulations to her for all the hard work she continues to do at Phoenix College.