A champion in literacy and newly elected school board member, Susan Miller is ready to conquer the post-pandemic decreasing district-wide literacy numbers. As a former elementary school teacher, curriculum coordinator, and instructional facilitator for Career Center High School, Miller has decades of experience. For Miller working in education was something she knew she had a knack for since she was young. 

    “As a teenager, I did a lot of babysitting to earn extra money and I love working with kids and everything about it,” Miller said. “I loved school even as a little girl. I would play school in my basement with my little dolls and stuffed animals so it was a natural fit.” 

    Not only is Miller highly talented in the classroom, but also on the court as her love for tennis took her all the way to the collegiate level.

    “I went to school in Tennessee at East Tennessee State and I went there because they recruited me; I was on their very first women’s tennis team,” Miller said. “I played in high school and I loved it so much.”

    Inspired to reach the school board with her bundle of hands-on and textbook knowledge, Miller campaigned heavily on the board’s need for a reading specialist. 

    “I have a B.S. degree in education and I have an MEd in literacy K-12 and then I have a postmasters in administration,” Miller said. “With all of that background in our school system of over two decades and then I retired in 2019 I really missed it. I missed the students and I missed the colleagues and I feel like I have a lot to give and I can make an impact, especially in literacy.”

    Miller hopes to continue with Superintendent Tricia McManus’s 90 by 25 plan which has a goal of 90% of students proficient in reading by 2025. In addition, Miller is fond of the science of reading technique which is being used nationwide. 

    “Back in the day when I was teaching we used the science of reading and its phonics like sounding out words,” Miller said. “We are going back to that and training our teachers as we speak and we should see the fruits of that soon.”

    Miller continues to articulate the importance of reading as she begins her new journey as a school board member.