Nicholas Santavicca

Nicholas Santavicca is an Associate Professor of English & Communication at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and serves as Director of the American Language and Cultural Institute. With over 15 years of teaching experience in language education, he has held positions in both K-12 and higher education settings across the United States and internationally, including in China and Spain.

His educational background includes:

• PhD in ESL/Bilingual Education from Texas Tech University (2014)
• MEd from University of Cincinnati (2007)
• BA from University of Kentucky (2001)

Dr. Santavicca's research focuses on language and culture acquisition methods, language assessment and curriculum design, and diversity issues in education and communication. His current work reimagines assessment practices, curriculum design, and school policies for multilingual/multicultural students and international students across educational levels from K-12 through higher education. His teaching specialties include Sheltered English Immersion, Pre-service Teacher Education, and Sociolinguistic Issues in TESOL.

As an educator, he teaches courses including EDU 452: Sheltered English Immersion, EDU 511: Pre-service Teachers I, EDU 652: Sociolinguistic Issues TESOL, and ENL 270: Speech Communication. His approach emphasizes cultural responsive pedagogy and strategies for addressing diverse student learning needs, particularly for English language learners.