Nichole Milton was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has spent most of her life in and around the South. Now, work opportunities have brought her family west and into Boulevard One. As President of the Boulevard One Community Association (BOCA), Nichole has her hands full with Lowry’s latest development, keeping development and neighborhood needs in place – a good place. But it all started in New Orleans.
The eldest of three daughters, Nichole thoroughly enjoyed growing up in The Big Easy and reflects on her time there fondly. She’s a firm believer in birth order theory as it relates to sibling dynamics. This school of thought suggests that the eldest is usually the leader amongst siblings and most inclined to be a high achiever. As the big sister, Nichole provided her younger siblings with a pretty good game plan for success.
In 1992, the family of five moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where Nichole continued to flourish in school. “I’ve always been a good student. I worked hard in school. Yes, there were some challenges, but school was generally easy.” Nichole went on to attend Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, Florida, where she pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. There, she happened to meet her future spouse, Rodney, who grew up in the Montbello area of Denver in the 90’s.
In 2003, Nichole earned her undergraduate degree and moved to Orlando where she taught 6th grade Language Arts for three years. Nichole felt somewhat stifled as a teacher because she was expressly prohibited from teaching what she loved – grammar and other fundamentals. Nichole has always enjoyed technical writing and would rather write a user guide than a novel. “Technical composition is so much easier – I can write the hell out of a manual!” Instead, Nichole was forced to teach to the (standardized) test, which basically amounted to a lot of essay writing. Realizing that teaching would not be her career’s final destination, she began looking for new challenges.
As it happens, around this time, a friend from college invited Nichole to attend a law school class. Although Nichole was already considering an offer to enroll in Auburn’s MBA program, she took the friend up on the offer and joined her at the law school. As she sat in the class and soaked in the experience, something clicked. “I like this – I can do this!” Nichole pivoted to law school applications and was accepted into the University of Florida and Florida State University. The Seminoles offered her a pretty hefty scholarship, which made deciding between the two opportunities much easier.
Nichole started at Florida State’s College of Law in the fall of 2006. And yes, she soared, just as a first-born child would. Nichole joined the Black Law Student Association and was also selected to join Florida State’s prestigious Moot Court team, which travels across the country to compete against other law schools in appellate practice. “I really liked the oral argument facet of Moot Court where you had to research and argue both sides of an issue before a panel of judges.” She also had to prepare 20 plus page briefs which allowed Nichole to tap into her English background, an exercise she thoroughly enjoyed.
Despite the rigors of law school, Nichole was not yet finished with higher education. During her first year, Nichole and Rodney got married and the new bride decided to enter a joint JD/MBA program that would allow her to graduate with both a business and law degree. Nichole finished both programs in less than four years and graduated from Florida State at the end of 2009, just after having her daughter, Kennedi.
Nichole and her family then moved back to Atlanta where her parents and siblings lived. She passed the Georgia bar exam and began to practice law with the City of Atlanta. She soon joined the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office where she prosecuted felony cases for several years. Realizing that criminal practice would not suit her in the long term, Nichole transitioned to court administration where she served as Chief Deputy Clerk of the State Court for six years.
Meanwhile, Nichole’s family was growing as her son, Ellis, arrived in 2011. Although she and Rodney were doing well in their respective professions, Nichole longed to get out of Atlanta. She had always been drawn to Denver after Rodney took her to visit some years prior. In the middle of the COVID pandemic, Nichole stumbled across an opportunity to join the federal judiciary, courtesy of a colleague with whom she had previously practiced. And where was this magical job based? Denver. Nichole applied for the position, received an offer, and accepted. The day after Christmas in 2020, she and her family packed up and made the 22-hour drive to set up shop in the Mile High City.
Nichole loves her new job with the federal court system. She is the Chief Deputy Clerk for the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. In short, she oversees cases from an administrative perspective rather than a lawyer’s. She supports the federal judges who preside over these cases by handling courtroom logistics and managing staff who work there. Her husband, Rodney, is Executive Director of ULI Colorado, a think tank organization for best practices in urban development. Rodney is also an adjunct at CU-Denver where he teaches Urban Planning to graduate students.
The Milton children are doing rather well too. Kennedi, now 14, and Ellis, 12, attend Morey Middle School and are quite the athletes. All four family members have found their respective niche here in Denver, and they’ve fully settled into their new home here in Lowry in Boulevard One.
Nichole is a woman who does not waste time. Within five months of living in Lowry, she found herself on the Boulevard One HOA board – and now she’s the President. (Boulevard One Community Association, BOCA, is the master HOA in the Boulevard One neighborhood of Lowry, similar to Lowry Community Master Association, LCMA, on the other side of Quebec.) Boulevard One has the usual problems that plague a new neighborhood, such as concerns over commercial growth and reckless drivers like those who race down Lowry Blvd. day and night. Still, Nichole is generally pleased with her experience living in Boulevard One and is proud of the community she serves. She does have several goals she hopes to achieve during her time on the Board, one of which is overhauling the BOCA website to make it more user friendly for new residents.
Nichole’s family is quite active and well-known in the area. You can regularly find them out and about, either walking their pair of Basenji pups in one of Boulevard One’s many parks or perhaps grabbing a bite at Clark’s or Denver Beer Company. “It’s so walkable here and it’s incredible to have so many amenities just outside our door. My kids consider the ‘baby Target’ off Quebec their second home.”
Nichole Milton is driven. She devotes her time and energy to her family, work, and tennis – in that order. “I guess being the first born has always suited and served me well. I love to stay busy, and being regimented and organized has led me to great success,” she says, laughing and shaking her curly hair around. “I’ve met the goals I set for myself and now I’m enjoying the fruits of my labor. I’m in a good place, my kids are doing well in school, Rodney is flourishing and we’re here in Lowry. All pretty good, wouldn’t you say?”
Yes, for sure. And we are lucky to have Nichole here in Lowry.
Meet Your Lowry Neighbors is a monthly feature written by our intrepid reporter Sally Kurtzman, who knows everyone in our community. If you have a suggestion for a Meet Your Lowry Neighbor, please send us an email to connect@lowryunitedneighborhoods.org.