Mathematics classrooms have the power to shape not only a child’s academic career, but how they feel about themselves and their contributions. I have learned the greatest lessons from my students; they continue to inspire and fill me with complete awe of their capabilities. The Presidential Award signifies the importance of the critical work mathematics educators do every day and I’m beyond humbled and honored to be a recipient of this prestigious award.

Nicole Williams Liberty Corner, NJ | K-6, Mathematics, 2022

The official biography below was current at the time of the award.

Nicole Williams has been an educator for 21 years. Over the past seven years, she has been working as a Mathematics Instructional Support Teacher at Liberty Corner Elementary School. Previously, she worked as a classroom teacher for 12 years in kindergarten, third, and sixth grades at Manhattan School for Children. She began her career at Jonas Bronck Elementary School, where she spent two years teaching third grade. As the Mathematics Instructional Support Teacher, Nicole works to support students, kindergarten through fifth grade, in making mathematics content more accessible and fostering a love of curiosity and inquiry in the minds of her students. Nicole provides students with rich and challenging tasks with which they can grapple, discuss, and debate as a community to work towards a shared understanding. Since she centers student voice in her mathematics communities, every student’s love of mathematics can thrive. In addition to working with students in the classroom, Nicole shares engaging and meaningful activities with families to encourage a lifelong love of mathematics. Nicole collaborates with her administration to provide teachers with a wide range of resources to support high-quality mathematics instruction for all students. Nicole was the recipient of the 2020 Elementary Mathematics Specialist Scholarship from the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators. She was also named Teacher of the Year at Liberty Corner Elementary in 2022. Nicole is certified to teach kindergarten through sixth grade. She graduated with a B.S. in liberal arts in 2002 from Towson University and earned an M.S. in education in 2003 from Fordham University. She is currently working to obtain an M.A. in mathematics education from Mount Holyoke College.

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