UM First-Gen Grad Funds $5k Award for Student Teachers

CORAL GABLES — A University of Miami alumna, Roxanne Greitz Miller '90, has established the Roxanne Greitz Miller '90 Senior Student Teacher Award. The $5,000 award will support outstanding senior student teachers who demonstrate exceptional promise during their fieldwork. The Department of Teaching and Learning at UM will administer the fund, and the department chair will select recipients.

Miller, who graduated from UM in 1990 with degrees in Biology, Chemistry, and Secondary Education, created the award to honor the financial aid she received as a first-generation student. Alumni support enabled her to complete her education during student teaching. She noted that student teaching often requires unpaid full-time work while students simultaneously manage coursework, tuition, and living expenses.

Miller built a career in education, teaching secondary science for nearly a decade before pursuing advanced degrees and moving into higher education. She currently serves as Dean of the Attallah College of Educational Studies at Chapman University.

She hopes recipients will inspire future students to give back, continuing a cycle of support. "This award carries my family's name so that this story keeps moving forward, with each new chapter written by the UM future teachers we are investing in today," Miller said.