President Jack Miller has been a major influence and conductor in bringing the Central Connecticut campus up to the potential it always had to be. Between raising endowments, graduation rates and adding academic building, Miller made tremendous contributions to CCSU within his past 12 years as president.
Last week, Miller announced via email that come September, he will be retiring from his position.
“During this time, it has been most pleasing to see what our faculty, staff and students have accomplished. New programs, new colleges and schools, beautiful facilities both new and renovated, greatly increased scholarship support for students and most importantly tremendous improvement in student success. It has been more fun than I can possibly explain for Barbara and me, but now it is time to go,” said Miller in his email to the campus community.
Specifically for the journalism department and The Recorder, Miller has been an ally to us in the past during troubling times. In 2012, Shaun Green, coach to the CCSU soccer team, was caught on camera throwing about 150 copies of The Recorder into trash barrels in the Student Center. This was due to a dislike for an article ran in that issue regarding the soccer teams disqualification from the following years postseason, because of NCAA academic sanctions.
“If there’s one thing that I believe about education, in particular post-secondary education, it’s that it’s a place where people should come and be challenged and experience different thoughts and ideas. I think that’s what education is,” said Miller. “I’ve had the opportunity on many occasions to defend that principal – and I defend it because I believe in it.”
A fierce leader, who trusts his students and faculty to do the right thing, who believes in free speech and being challenged in education. All these aspects of Miller came together to make him exactly what CCSU needed in a time where graduation rates were in the lowest percentile, scholarship funds were low and academic space was lacking.
Although everyone may have their varying opinion about him, as everyone always does, it can’t be denied how much good he’s done for the campus community in only 12 years time.
An instantly likable man, with a bright personality, will be leaving CCSU set up for future success thanks to all the time and dedication he put into bringing the CCSU environment up to a place where it matches its true potential. Hopefully allowing CCSU to become one of the best regional public comprehensive universities in the country, one of Miller’s top goals.
On behalf of past and future editorial boards of The Recorder, we genuinely thank President Miller for all he’s done to contribute to CCSU’s cost, quality of education and resources; as well as always being a strong ally all students and faculty members could rely on.