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September 1, 2016

Chair, Tenure and Promotion Committee

Gallaudet University
800 Florida Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002
Re: Letter of support for tenure and promotion for Dr. Keith Cagle
Dear Committee Members:
I am writing this letter in support of Dr. Keith Cagles application for tenure and promotion at Gallaudet
University. Dr. Cagle is presently a faculty member in the Gallaudet University Department of
Interpretation and Translation, where I am an associate professor and the director of the Center for the
Advancement of Interpreting and Translation Research (CAITR).
I first met Keith Cagle at the University of New Mexico (UNM) in Albuquerque, although I had long
been aware of his national reputation as a speaker and educator. When Keith came to UNM as a doctoral
student in the educational linguistics program, I was also a doctoral student in the department. I had heard
that Keith was heavily recruited for the doctoral program and the reasons why quickly became apparent.
In a short time, Keith distinguished himself as both a highly successful lecturer in the UNM interpreting
program, as well as a dedicated and brilliant student. His doctoral dissertation Exploring the Ancestral
Roots of American Sign Language: Lexical Borrowing from Cistercian Sign Language and French Sign
Language was an excellent piece of research that has received acclaim for its detailed approach to
historical development of the American Sign Language lexicon. In fact, when Keith presented his
dissertation findings for the 2015 Colloquium Lecture Series at Gallaudet, over one thousand people
viewed his video streamed lecture. This number speaks both to Keiths reputation as well as to the quality
of his research.
As fate would have it, I found myself working with Dr. Cagle a number of years later as his colleague in
the Department of Interpretation and Translation at Gallaudet. Once again, I was witness to his
outstanding skills, honed from his extensive experience at numerous academic institutions, notably the
University of Northern Colorado, Central Piedmont Community College, and Gardner-Webb University.
His expertise with teaching, administering programs, and educational planning (including curriculum
development) have proven to be invaluable to the Department of Interpretation and Translation.
Dr. Cagle has demonstrated the flexibility to teach a wide variety of courses at both graduate and
undergraduate levels and he consistently garners praise from his students. Dr. Cagle is a highly

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respected educator who has the reputation of being deeply committed to innovative programming that
enhance student learning.
Regarding research, Dr. Cagle and I have worked as collaborators with success. We collaborated on a
study with two external colleagues in which we investigated the factors that influenced highly skilled
Deaf translators rendition of a portion of President Barack Obamas 2009 inaugural address. That paper
was accepted for 2017 publication by the Journal of Interpretation and was recently presented at an
international conference in Edinburgh, Scotland. We will also be presenting the findings at the
Conference of Interpreter Trainers in October 2016. In addition, Dr. Cagle and I co-edited a volume of
selected papers from the 2014 International Symposium on Signed Language Interpreting and Translation
Research (Gallaudet University Press, 2015). Dr. Cagle is also collaborating with other faculty members
on several studies that are forthcoming.
Dr. Cagle has been the Coordinator of Bachelor of Arts program in Interpretation at Gallaudet
University from 2013 to present. Among his many accomplishments in that short time, he has increased
the numbers of students in the program, helped to standardize the curriculum, and has successfully led a
large adjunct teaching staff. One of his most notable accomplishments has been the extensive work he has
done to establish articulation agreements with numerous associate degree programs. Through his efforts,
students who successfully complete coursework in these programs can enter the Bachelors program at
Gallaudet.
Dr. Cagle has won many awards in his life, most recently being honored with the prestigious George W.
Veditz Award in recognition of significant contributions to the field of ASL Teaching by the National
American Sign Language Teachers Association. His CV enumerates the many awards and honors of
which he has been a recipient. These honors speak to Dr. Cagles longstanding leadership in the
profession, as well as to his personal integrity. Dr. Cagle is highly respected not only for the work that he
does, but also for the wisdom that he brings to his work. His many attributes have made him a highly
sought-after individual by numerous academic institutions. We are fortunate that he has chosen to stay at
Gallaudet University.
In sum, Dr. Cagle is a deserving recipient of promotion and tenure in the Department of Interpretation and
Translation at Gallaudet University. Time and time again, he has demonstrated drive, commitment, and
excellence in service, teaching, and research of an outstanding faculty member. Dr. Cagle is dedicated to
education and to the advancement of knowledge through research.
Please feel free to contact me if I may offer any further insight about Dr. Cagles many positive qualities.
Sincerely,

Brenda Nicodemus, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Department of Interpretation and Translation
Director, Interpretation and Translation Research Center
Gallaudet University
800 Florida Avenue NE
Washington, DC 20002