An outspoken advocate for students, her “big personality” and knack for quashing the status quo are just a few reasons why Nicole Keegan is a standout in her state. Keegan’s role as a sports coach has helped her form lasting links with her students and the community at large.
Keegan develops relationships with students and works with them as a class, in small groups and individually. She employs modeling and strong questioning to engage her kids, along with differentiation, standard- based instruction and ongoing formative assessments to modify instruction. Keegan holds reading/writing workshops and invites parents to her class eight times a year to view their children’s written work and hear them read.
Credited with helping Dakota make AYP in 2010 for first time, Keegan boasts a laundry list of leadership roles both in and outside of her teaching areas. She is on the national Direct Recruiting Efforts to Attract Minorities (DREAM) Team National Committee to promote National Board Certified teachers of color. Keegan also mentors new teachers and helps experienced teachers excel even more. Her collaborative efforts are made manifest in her memberships on the Building Leadership Team, Rapid City Area Schools Science Curriculum Realignment Committee and State Benchmark Assessment Committee. Keegan also chairs the science department and presents at staff development meetings, as well as at several state- and national-level conferences.
