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Tracy Miller: Post-Secondary Pathways Leader
Tracy Miller had many interests, but it was her high school business teacher who helped her find focus and nurtured her potential through experiential learning.
“She made sure I took every business class. My senior year, the business department nominated me for business student of the year,” said Miller, who is the interim coordinator of postsecondary pathways, instruction, and student services for Kalamazoo Public Schools.
In addition to her classwork, Miller worked for three State of Michigan departments as a co-op student in her junior and senior years.
“Those experiences opened my eyes to the world of work, earning money, and learning workplace employability skills,” she said. “They helped me grow up and level up, and to take accountability for my future.”
Her own experience is why she is passionate about Career & Technical Education and its focus on hands-on, experiential learning. Miller advocates for creating as many opportunities as possible for students to learn interactively about who they are and to connect to the career activities and opportunities that will help their talents flourish.
“I saw the difference CTE can make in someone’s life,” she said. “It certainly inspired mine.”
Her own journey, she said, shows how educators and mentors can influence someone’s career path. After graduating from high school in Lansing, Miller’s own experience was a hybrid of college, professional and personal development, and hands-on work experience.
Miller earned two associate’s degrees from Davenport University and a bachelor’s in secondary education and a master’s degree in career and technical education from Western Michigan University in leadership and administration. She is a current doctoral student in Workforce Education and Development and Educational Leadership, Research, and Technology at WMU, where she sometimes serves as an adjunct instructor. She also has professional and occupational teaching certifications.
In addition to her formal education, Miller has worked for KPS for 30 years. She started as a support staff person, and moved through numerous positions, including elementary supervisor, instructional projects supervisor, special projects supervisor, educator, and technology integration specialist. For the last 16 years, she’s been focused on career education and development, college and career readiness, instructional technology, and CTE.
Miller wrote the Career Education Interdisciplinary Curriculum that was used in school districts across Michigan in partnership with Michigan Department of Education and Michigan Virtual University. She is a certified Global Career Development Facilitator and has presented at numerous state conferences.
Miller said her time in KPS has been marked by amazing supervisors such as the late Judy Johnson, Hank Harper, Kelli Sweet, Yvonne Payton, Patricia Coles-Chalmers, and Dr. Terina Harvey. “I stand on the shoulders of many great leaders,” she said. “They believed in me and lifted while they climbed.”
Miller said the tremendous support and encouragement of her husband, Terry, and daughters, Zaria and Simone, inspired her on her journey.
As an advocate for CTE, Miller said her goal is to encourage students to explore and take the time to identify and develop their interests and skills while still in high school. When they leave they may not have a specific career identified, but they should know themselves and their interests well enough to have an idea of what career pathways might be a good fit.
Every pathway contains hundreds of careers. Students can transfer their education, training, knowledge, and skills across numerous industries and careers within a single pathway.
“I do not want any student to graduate without a goal, without a plan for the future, without a dream,” she said. “Students have to be able to envision their future with self-efficacy and see themselves successful in a career. We have to continue to provide them with the education, resources, and meaningful experiences to grow their mindsets and capacity for self-confidence while helping them achieve that career vision.”