Kelly Marie Miller is an American academic. Since August 2017, she has served as the 11th president of Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi (TAMUCC). She is the first female president of the university.

Early life and education

Kelly Marie Miller was born in Altoona, Pennsylvania, to a welder father and a stay-at-home mother who was formerly a preschool teacher. In 1989, she became the first person in her family to attend a university, graduating from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

as a first-generation college student. While at the University of Pittsburgh, she joined the university's chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta. She earned her Ph.D. in speech communication from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

in 1994, after earning a master's degree in 1992.

Academic career

Miller joined the staff of Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi (TAMUCC) after earning her doctorate. She taught classes in communication as the youngest full-time faculty member at age 26, teaching for 16 years. Aside from communication, her courses covered business and leadership. At TAMUCC she has held the positions of Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts; Director of the School of Arts, Media & Communication; and Chair for the Department of Communication and Theatre. In January 2017, Miller became interim president of TAMUCC, being the sole finalist for president in June of that year. The Texas A&M University System board of regents declared her president after a brief meeting on June 19, 2017. As president, Miller states two of her goals are to increase student retention and to grow the university academically and physically. Shortly after her inauguration as president she was involved in a dispute with student activists who objected to the anonymous dissemination of

white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other Race (human classification), races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any Power (social and polit ...

flyers on campus. The administration reported the case to the district attorney's office, and Miller said in a statement, "

his is the His or HIS may refer to: Computing * Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company * Honeywell Information Systems * Hybrid intelligent system * Microsoft Host Integration Server Education * Hangzhou International School, in ...

price we pay for our precious right to freedom of speech" and, "Personally, I choose not to be drawn into this divisiveness". In December 2019, she oversaw the university's purchase of a building in downtown

Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...

, noting needs for new campus space due to growth and for revitalization of the area.

Other activities

Outside of TAMUCC, Miller has worked as a consultant and gives presentations on various subjects. She has served on the board of the Art Museum of South Texas, the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra, and the Harbor Playhouse.

Selected bibliography

Books

Papers

References

External links

Facebook page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Kelly M. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Women heads of universities and colleges Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi faculty People from Altoona, Pennsylvania People from Corpus Christi, Texas 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers University of Pittsburgh alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni American women academics