Nancy Williams

Dr. Nancy Williams earned a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction- Reading and Language Arts from Louisiana State University, an M.ED in Early Childhood Education from the University of South Alabama and a B.S. in Elementary Education from Worcester State College (Massachusetts). Additionally, she completed graduate work at the University of South Alabama that led to state certification in reading, supervision, and administration. She is a former elementary school teacher and administrator and has been an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and at the University of Houston. She was awarded tenure and promoted to associate professor at the University of Houston, and, after serving the institution for six years, she became the chair of the Education Department at Cedar Crest College in Allentown, PA. She then accepted the position of associate professor at the University of South Florida where she was awarded tenure and received an award for excellent teaching at the undergraduate level. After serving the USF for 13 years, she was awarded early retirement and is presently a contributing faculty member at Walden University. At all these institutions, she served the university, community, and the profession. She advised students at all levels, served on numerous committees, volunteered in schools, and offered her expertise as a reviewer and editor for several literacy journals and annuals. Her research interests include vocabulary teaching and learning, motivation and authentic reading and writing, and literacy across the curriculum. She frequently presents research at the International Literacy Association, and the American Reading Forum and has been active in the American Educational Research Association and the Literacy Research Association. She is published in several literacy and teacher education journals including The Reading Teacher and Journal of Teacher Education. A native of Massachusetts and a longtime resident of “the South.” she now lives in Tarpon Springs, Florida with her rescue cat, Crookshanks.

Courses Taught

EDUC 8544 - Learners Changing Literacy Landscape

EDUC 8081 - Completing the Prospectus

EDUC 8090 - Doctoral Study Intensive

EDDD 8090 - Completing the Prospectis

EDDD 8990 - Completing the Doctoral Capstone

Education

PhD, Louisiana State University

MEd, University of South Alabama

BS, Worcester State College

Awards / Honors

Honorable Mention for Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation, , 1989

Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, University of South Florida, 2004

Publications

Williams, N. (2012). .

Williams, N., Morton, M. L. (2003). A lesson before prying: Initiation to inquiry within a collaborative community of literacy educators. Reading Horizons