Academic Background & Research Interests

Dr. Nicole King is an Assistant Professor of TESOL and Bilingual Education in the Feinstein College of Education at the University of Rhode Island. Her experiences as a former teacher of multilingual learners in the US (Louisiana and South Carolina) and Italy drive her research interests in the translingual and transmodal practices of multilingual students, families, communities, and teachers. She seeks to bring these perspectives to teacher education and to empower pre- and in-service teachers to enact equitable and sustaining practices in their teaching and advocacy.

Dr. King’s work critically examines the connections between research and practice situated within localized contexts and communities. She researches how to prepare teachers to create more linguistically, culturally, and racially just and humane spaces for learning and teaching. As a qualitative researcher who employs ethnographic methods, she strives to develop rich understanding and relationships with the multilingual teachers, students, and families with whom she researches. Specifically, she looks at the development and transformation of translanguaging repertoires in pre-and in-service language teachers within localized settings, how multilingual students negotiate language ideologies, language use, culture, and positioning in the expression of their identities, and the reciprocal exchange of knowledge and understanding when teachers learn to take up a community-as-pedagogy mindset.

Personal Interests & Fun Facts

I’ve been a vegan for over a decade and am a bit of a foodie. I love exploring new places, and one of my favorite things is getting lost in new cities. I love traveling and hope to put a toe on each continent.