Nicki J. Foley

 After my bachelor's degree from Villanova University, I was a certified elementary teacher and worked in that arena for several years. While I pursued some years focusing on my family, I also used my education to continue to work part-time as a tutor and substitute teacher. When I completed my MS Ed from the College of St. Rose in Literacy, I continued teaching, then followed a path as a project manager of a research grant at the University at Albany, then shifted to a position as the Ed. Dept. coordinator at Union Graduate College, which then merged with Clarkson University, where I grew in a position as the Director of Clinical Education.  During some of that that time ('16 - '19) I was elected to the Niskayuna Central School District Board of Education where I learned a tremendous amount about the administrative side of running a school district.  I enjoy working with district to place students in their clinical experiences and I began teaching the Professionalism in Teaching course which accomanies our student teaching internship in 2020, where I help students learn about Social Emotional Learning while also reflecting on how the pedagogy learned in the program is applied and practiced in their placements. Finally we consider goals for the future and the growth made throughout the year as students develop their last assessment of the program - The Teaching Perfornance Assessment.