Professor David Miller Receives Advanced Placement Honor

MC English professor David Miller

A distinguished Mississippi College professor and scholar, David Miller continues to receive national recognition for his hard work.

He’s known in academic circles nationwide as the chief reader for the Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition exam.

It’s not an easy assignment for the MC professor of nearly three decades. Dr. Miller selects and manages 950 readers, all educators gathering to review student essays, key parts of the AP exam. The event is organized and run by the Educational Testing Service based in Princeton, New Jersey.

That’s not all. Dr. Miller serves on the committee responsible for the content of the exam. AP tests each year open the door for outstanding high school students to receive college credits.

Playing such a prominent role with this challenging AP exam speaks volumes, colleague say.

“It’s a testimony to his boundless energy and teaching excellence,” says Jonathan Randle, dean of the MC School of Humanities and Social Sciences. “By nature, he’s an enthusiast of teaching and of unpacking intricate, beautiful and challenging texts.”

The latest honor for the remarkable professor backs up what English Department faculty have known for years. “He really is one of a kind, equivalent in capacity and talent to professors at much larger and more prestigious institutions,” Randle added. “We are lucky to have him at MC.”

Miller was recently notified by AP program leaders he will stay as chief reader for AP English Literature in 2020. He was first appointed to the post in 2017 after 17 years of service in leadership positions. He leads a cohort of nearly 1,000 faculty from almost 900 colleges, universities and secondary schools.

“Professor Miller exemplifies Mississippi College’s academic excellence, high standards and enduring values through the highly visible leadership he provides annually,” says Terry Redican, vice president for AP Program delivery.

Miller works closely with college faculty and high school teachers gathering in June to score AP English Literature exams. During his five-year term, he will have helped measure the English Literature proficiency and qualification for college placement of two million students worldwide.

Honors are nothing new for Miller. In 2013, Mississippi College colleagues selected him the Christian university’s Distinguished Professor of the Year.

He is well-versed in British and American literature and year-round gets high marks from his students. Away from Jennings Hall classrooms, the professor enjoys cooking, writing, reading and traveling.

Miller says he is delighted to work at an institution “focused on teaching and service to others.”

Miller graduated Summa Cum Laude at Nyack College in New York. The Mississippian received his master’s and doctorate at Baylor University in Texas.

Interim Provost Debbie Norris pours on the praise for the gifted professor receiving AP honors. “This is a tremendous accomplishment for Dr. Miller and positively impacts Mississippi College’s reputation nationwide.”