By:Cindy J. Roth
Most people have one high-school teacher they never forget. Sometimes, it is because the teacher gave five hours of homework a night or called on students regardless of whether their hands were raised. Other teachers are remembered because of an odd odor that emanated from their classrooms or a toupee that just did not fit right. Somewhere in the mix of mentors, there is usually one teacher students remember as involved and motivated and above all, a friend. Wellington C. Mepham High School biology teacher Nicole Hollings fits that mold.
Hollings, 29, originally of Deer Park, came to Mepham in 1993 to teach biology and Advanced Placement biology. In her eight years at the school, Hollings has gained the respect of her peers and students for innovative teaching styles that incorporate cooperative group learning. To honor her work, the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District recently presented Hollings with 2001 Anne Crowley Staff Development Award.
The district gives the accolade annually. The award recognizes outstanding commitment to professional growth and was created six years ago in honor of Anne Crowley, who served as a district administrator and teacher for 31 years.
"We were looking for someone who fits Anne Crowley's mold by being a role model," Mepham Principal John Didden said. "Nicole Hollings has helped other teachers adapt and helped students learn. To be the kind of colleague who demonstrates day in and day out to be an ultimate professional, that's where Nicole shines. She is a dynamite teacher. She is someone who works at her craft."
Laura Maitland, Mepham Science Department chairwoman, said what distinguishes Hollings is the informal professional development she demonstrates each day. At Science Department meetings, teachers share approaches to labs or topics that worked well for them, and Hollings is often a major contributor, Maitland said. Hollings has also been a featured speaker at district conferences on successful ways of integrating technology in the classroom, and she spoke at the National Science Teachers Association Annual Convention in Boston in 1998 about applying the multiple-station approach to science instruction.
Hollings' classroom door is also open for colleagues who want to observe first-hand Hollings' group-learning techniques, which Maitland describes as her area of expertise. Anthony Graziano, an earth-science teacher at Mepham for the last five years, has sat in on several of Hollings' classes and said she is a role model for other educators.
"She is very upbeat, optimistic and always willing to help other people," Graziano said. "Her dedication sets her apart. She is always the first car in and the last to leave. She sets the standard."
Beyond her classroom duties, Hollings puts in an additional 20 to 25 hours weekly as an adviser for several student groups. The popular teacher is the senior-class adviser, helping students raise funds, solidify prom plans and prepare for their college transitions. She keeps score at the boys and girls basketball and volleyball games. She is the mock-trial adviser, a PTA liaison, a union building representative, and she directs the annual talent show.
Hollings, a former chorus member in the Broadway musical "Les Miserables," also sings in the Mepham talent show, which always brings down the house, Principal Didden said. Hollings sang in "Les Miserables" one summer while in college and said her acting background helps her to bring alive the most banal classroom subjects.
Hollings admits she sometimes has a hard time balancing her personal and professional life, but for her right now, that is OK. She simply enjoys working with Mepham's staff, students, community and PTA.
Hollings received her bachelor's degree in biology from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania in 1994 and a master's degree in science education from SUNY Stony Brook in 1998. Hollings said her biology teacher at Deer Park High School first piqued her interest in the subject, and Hollings now works to pass that spark on to her students.
"I absolutely hated science, and now I'm very influenced," said Colleen Lynch, a Mepham senior who took biology and Advanced Placement biology with Hollings. Lynch plans to study biology in college.
Many students name Hollings as their most-memorable teacher. Even some of her less-successful students said Hollings convinced them they could pass science if they tried, and many delighted when they earned a passing grade for a subject they considered too hard for them, Maitland wrote in Hollings' award-nomination letter.
Lori Gurien, vice president of Mepham's senior class, said Hollings connects with her students. "She cared about you as an individual," Gurien said. "At the end of the year, she wrote individual letters to each person that were personal and detailed. She always knew what was going on. She has a lot of spirit with everything."
Hollings is taking on yet another challenge at Mepham. She has become coordinator of Mepham's senior experience program, which is to start next fall. The program is to link seniors with internships in local businesses so they can apply what they have learned in the classroom to the workaday world.
