A big part of what makes a University unique is its faculty and staff. They are the individuals who inspire students, share their knowledge, and give personality to a campus. Joelle Bonamy is one of those people.Bonamy is originally from Alabama, where she earned her B.A. from the University of Montevallo. She then attended the University of Alabama, earning her Master’s degree.

Bonamy’s career began by teaching elementary school and then high school. Bonamy said she has always felt that she had a calling to teach. One of the people that influenced her along the way was a professor at the University of Montevallo.

Bonamy has been teaching at Nicholls since August 2008. Even though she has not been part of the Nicholls family for very long, she already loves it here. She said the Nicholls campus reminds her of the University of Montevallo and she enjoys the fact that a smaller institution allows a more personal experience for teaching.

She teaches a variety of classes, from introductory level Spanish to upper-level classes. Bonamy gets enthusiastic seeing more and more students enrolling in foreign language classes, and eventually realizing how valuable they can be. She says it is always something good that an employer would like to see on a resume. Not only that, but it can open many other doors in life.

Bonamy said she never finds the task of teaching people a second language overwhelming. She said there are many strategies for teaching people a foreign language that anyone can learn. The main requirement is that they put in the time to learn. She believes that practice and usage in real life scenarios help to reinforce the effectiveness of what is learned in the classroom.

Bonamy is not only active in the world of academics, but also outside activities as well. She enjoys playing tennis, reading and traveling. Among her favorite destinations are Gibraltar and other parts of southern Spain, where she has relatives.

When it comes to music, she is a fan of a variety of genres, including rock, pop, classical, and Latin/Spanish. She also likes to keep up with what is current in her field by reading Spanish journals in her free time.

Joelle Bonamy is one of the many people that help to add to the character, diversity, and personality of Nicholls.