Nora Miller laughs now when she tells the story.
As a high school student in the 1970s living in St. Louis, Missouri, Miller threw away a $1,300 presidential scholarship offer she received from Mississippi University for Women before she even opened it. She was certain she wasn’t moving to Mississippi to attend an all-women’s college.
But after much convincing from her parents, who had retrieved the letter, and her high school guidance counselor, Miller visited the campus in Columbus.
That visit changed everything, setting Miller on a path that eventually led to her presidency at the university.
Miller retired on June 30 after nearly eight years as president of MUW, also known as The W, and more than three decades in higher education in the state.
MUW President Nora Miller said the university needs to change its name in order to attract a wider net of students than women. Credit: Molly Minta/Mississippi Today“The accents, the colloquialisms, it was all funny to me,” Miller said, recalling her first visit to Mississippi. “I’d never seen roaches before, especially not flying ones. But, the slow pace, the friendliness of the people, my newfound friends and support from my family kept my homesickness away.”
Miller said her successor will inherit familiar challenges: funding pressures, an evolving higher education landscape and the task of sustaining the progress made by the regional institution.
Her departure also comes as the college board overseeing the state’s eight public universities is considering a new funding formula for the institutions.
Miller was named president of The W in 2018 after 17 years as the university’s chief financial officer. She also served as director of budget and financial analyst and director of internal audit at Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from MUW in 1983 and 1985, respectively.
Mississippi Today asked Miller to reflect on her challenges, accomplishments and lessons that shaped her tenure as MUW president and the rest of her career. She also shared her hopes for her successor.
“My hope is that stakeholders can be a part of the search process and get behind the new president to help them understand the big issues, come up with solutions that will support the institution and preserve all the good things we got going on here,” she said.
The following responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Mississippi University for Women in Columbus, Miss., Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayOn the biggest challenges of Miller’s career and president tenure
The university was hit by a tornado in November 2002. I was vice president for finance and administration of the university at the time, and I had only been in that role for a year. The storm caused nearly $20 million worth of damages. The campus looked like a war zone. Luckily, nobody was hurt. We got one initial payment from (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) but it was at least 10 years before we were reimbursed for everything. But in the process, we were able to rebuild a few campus buildings, including a new recreation center, and restore the third floor of our art building.
The second challenge would be the attempt to change the university’s name in 2024. The reason we were changing the name was to help us market our programs better and to be reflective of who our current student body is. Mississippi Brightwell University didn’t stick. Neither did Wynbridge State University. We weren’t able to come up with a name everyone could really get behind.
The name change also coincided with the Legislature coming up with a bill that would have merged us with Mississippi State University. No matter what opinions were about the name, faculty, alumni and students … wanted to remain a standalone institution. So, I think in some ways it brought us back stronger and helped people to realize just how valuable this institution is.
On big wins as MUW’s president
The W’s reaccreditation status. It happens every 10 years and is a rigorous and big undertaking to make sure the university meets academic and operational standards. Everybody works so hard on it. The university is also celebrating a decade of having intercollegiate athletics in the NCAA Division III.
We also joined the Coalition of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC), which is a consortium of 30 public colleges and universities across the country dedicated to providing quality liberal arts education. It’s been great providing our faculty with research opportunities and professional development. Our deans and provosts have benefitted from being part of it.
We also reopened our Culinary Arts Institute building in 2023. We also renovated Turner Hall, our speech language pathology school. We named it after Alma Turner, an alumna and the first principal of the teacher demonstration school. It’s the first building on our campus named after an African American student, and it was important we gave it to her.
On advice for the next MUW president
Listen to everyone and attend as many functions on campus and in town. It’s important to be present, seen and involved. Try to love this place, realize how special it is and try to preserve all the good things the university has going on. There are great people who love this institution. The next leader should know, recognize and be thankful for that. When talking with legislators, share the good news about our university with them.
READ MORE: Next leader of Mississippi University for Women has ‘big shoes to fill’
As for the alums, faculty, students and community stakeholders, I say be open to the new leader. Help them become a part of campus and the Columbus community. My biggest hope is that stakeholders can be a part of the search process and get behind the new person to help them understand the issues, come up with solutions that will support the institution.
Mississippi University for Women in Columbus, Miss., Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayOn university funding issues
It’s a constant battle for funding, mainly infrastructure and operating funds. The state doesn’t fund higher education the way it should be supported and funded. It’s a struggle that our faculty are not paid well enough. We’ve also got buildings that need a lot of work. We’ve got, you know, needs that go beyond what we’re able to fund.
I think we’re going to be in the same situation with the new funding formula that IHL is considering. There’s a lot of competing interests, and the larger institutions have more resources — more opportunities for resources and support — than the regional institutions. They also have a bigger voice and more people in the House. We don’t have a lot of support in the House. Luckily, we have Donnie Scoggin, chair of the House Universities and Colleges committee.
On the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science
MSMS is a wonderful institution and was founded here on our campus. It’s also wonderful to see the kids excel at what they’re able to do and the opportunities that this school gives them.
But, the school’s lack of funding continues to be an issue. The state funded it in the very beginning but then neglected it. The state couldn’t pay for the upkeep on the school’s facilities. We support them as best we can, but it’s really the state Department of Education that needs to be the advocate for MSMS. It’s the state school. It’s not Columbus’, it’s not Lowndes County’s, it’s not the W’s school. I have spoken out repeatedly at every chance I get for them, but it’s really not our place.
On what Miller’s looking forward to most in retirement
I think being able to read and set my own schedule and calendar. I like to read fiction. I just finished “The Correspondent” by Virginia Evans. I’m reading “The Calamity Club” by Kathryn Stockett, a Mississippi native. Every fall semester, I would take a class called Eudora Welty Writer Symposium, and I would read all the authors who were coming to speak at the annual event. Since 2001, I’ve taken every class and have two bookcases filled with those books. It’s just one of the many things I’ll miss not being on campus.
Hence then, the article about q a nora miller reflects on her tenure her hopes and the constant battle for funding for mississippi university for women was published today ( ) and is available on Mississippi Today ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Q&A: Nora Miller reflects on her tenure, her hopes and the ‘constant battle for funding,’ for Mississippi University for Women )
Also on site :
- Norwegian Cruise Line Unveils New Adults-Only Beach Clubs and Upgraded Thermal Spas
- San Sebastián: New Titles From J.A.Bayona, ’The Beloved’ Scribe Isabel Peña and Fernando Trueba; Mikel Gurrea, Berto Romero and Roberto Bueso Set for Competition
- Joanna Gaines’ ‘Simple Yet Elegant’ $30 Stoneware Serving Bowl Is a Charming ‘Centerpiece’ for Any Table