Dr. Newton Miller has been committed to the education arena since 1995 when he converted non-traditionally from the ranks of the engineering field. His research interest lies within educating at-potential populations, focusing on the systemic thinking tied to student achievement, effective school cultures, and facilitating programming and instruction that promotes educational success within at-potential adult populations.
Dr. Miller currently serves as the Lead Faculty of the Education Studies and Educator Preparation programs at the University of Arizona Global Campus. Some of his contributions to the world of education have been lauded by honors like the Impact Award from the Urban League 2018; Provost Award for Outstanding Faculty, from Ashford University, 2014 and the Excellence in Teaching Award from Swarthmore College, 2012. He is the author of “Why Some Seeds Don’t Grow” a book that sheds light on high impact principles needed to enhance the educating, mentoring, and parenting of urban youth.
Dr. Miller believes educators are meant to facilitate the thinking that changes the world; thus, his mantra is: Educate … Motivate … Help Them Grow!
Fun Fact: Dr. Miller’s dream job was as a Structural Engineer until he stood in front of a classroom of knowledge-hungry, inner-city students. It was at that moment he knew his true purpose and career path was to be an educator.
Keynote Presentation
Learning from Men of Color: What works when serving at-potential populations.
In this session participants will learn from 1300 men of color who attended three regionally accredited, primarily online universities, how to overcome low retention and high failure rates of at-potential students. Findings from an extensive study in which those men participated show how connecting the high-yield techniques and methods, and the three common pillars of mind found in that study can achieve that goal.
Many of the techniques and methods presented will undoubtedly be known and already in use by session participants. In this session, however, we will challenge traditionalism and explicitly discuss ways to package and deliver them to positively impact at-potential students. The high-yield techniques and methods, and three common pillars of mind highlighted in this session transformed instructional delivery in the Education Studies and Educator Preparation programs at the University of Arizona Global Campus and led to 16% and 14% increases in course passage and retention (respectively).