USU Professor Honored With National Collegiate Honors Council Fellows Award

Kristine Miller, professor of English and executive director of the Utah State University Honors Program, has been recognized with the prestigious Fellows Award from the National Collegiate Honors Council. NCHC Fellows are distinguished individuals who have made notable contributions to honors education, both at their own institutions and on the national level.

Miller will be honored as part of the 59th annual NCHC conference award ceremony, which will be on Nov. 1 in Kansas City, Missouri.

“I could not think of anyone more deserving of this award,” said university provost Laurens H. Smith. “Dr. Miller’s tireless efforts and leadership over the last decade are a major reason why Utah State University’s Honors Program is one of the best in the country. Her dedication to students is second-to-none. We congratulate her on receiving this esteemed status.”

This award recognizes faculty and administrators who demonstrate leadership and commitment to honors education at their home institutions and leadership within the NCHC. The distinction celebrates their many contributions to honors teaching, learning, scholarship, and leadership in higher education.

“I am grateful for the support of USU’s faculty, staff and administration, and I would particularly like to thank the students, alumni and staff of the University Honors Program,” Miller said. “Honors education is defined by a focus on student-directed experiential learning, but it is distinguished by a capacity to scale this approach to learning for all students. I appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues at USU and nationally to engage in this important work.”

Individuals inducted as NCHC Fellows are selected by rigorous peer review after careful consideration of:

• State, regional and national honors leadership.
• Generous participation in honors conferences.
• Scholarly contributions to honors education.
• Involvement in local and national honors professional development activities.
• Evidence of outstanding honors teaching.
• Consulting and other services to improve honors programming at varied institutions.
• Other important considerations that helped to single out individuals who have made a significant difference in the reputation and influence of NCHC and honors education across the nation.

“Each year, NCHC honors those who have contributed to the success of the National Collegiate Honors Council, the regional honors councils, and honors education as a whole,” said Eddie Weller, NCHC president. “Their service has been instrumental in the successes of people across the country. Together, the Fellows make up the backbone of honors education.”

Miller has led the USU Honors Program since July 2014 and joined the USU faculty in 1995. She is a graduate of the Honors Program at the University of Michigan, where she earned bachelor’s (1988), master’s (1991) and doctoral (1995) degrees in English.