Dr. Sarah Miller has been named associate dean for academic and student affairs for the University of South Carolina Salkehatchie.
Miller joined USC Salkehatchie in 2006 as an assistant professor of history with promotion to full professor in 2018 and has been an active part of the Salkehatchie campus and its communities.
“I am honored to take on the role of associate dean,” Miller said. “USC Salkehatchie and its communities have been an important part of my life for the last 18 years, and I’m excited to serve them both. Education and community service are both very important to me. I appreciate this opportunity and look forward to working with Dean Cone and the entire Salkehatchie campus.”
Dean April Cone says she is excited to work alongside Dr. Miller to move USC Salkehatchie forward. “Dr. Miller’s passion for USC Salkehatchie, our students, faculty, and staff, as well as the communities we serve is palpable and unmatched,” Cone said. “She is committed to advancing USC Salkehatchie’s mission, and I am confident that Dr. Miller will continue to contribute to the overall success of our campus.”
During her tenure at USC Salkehatchie, Miller has worked to provide valuable opportunities for its students and communities, often combining the two. Her students have been involved in projects with the Colleton County Historical and Preservation Society, Colleton Museum, and S.C. Humanities.
“As a historian, I have been blessed to be able to combine personal research, student involvement and community engagement to highlight the history of the Salkehatchie region. I plan to continue these relationships to support opportunities for our students,” Miller said.
Miller has mentored students through independent study research, the Magellan Scholars program and PURE (Palmetto Undergraduate Research Experience) grants. These projects have involved the study of local history, most notably the Bedon-Lucas House and Pon Pon Chapel of Ease. “Many people don’t realize that so much history happened in our local region, and I love guiding students to discover the world in their backyards,” she said.
Miller’s passion for fostering dogs and puppies for local shelters led to the approval of the Canine Fitness
Connection course for the Salkehatchie campus, which partners with the Colleton County Animal Shelter. Miller says she hopes to expand the partnership to the Allendale County shelter.
Miller has been named USC Salkehatchie’s Professor of the Year, voted on by the students, six times (2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2017, 2022). She is the inaugural winner of two Palmetto College Faculty awards, the Chris P. Plyler Excellence in Service Award (2012) and the John D. Duffy Excellence in Teaching Award.(2009) She was named the Walterboro-Colleton County Chamber of Commerce Humanitarian of the Year (2019), earned USC Salkehatchie’s Faculty Service Award, was a two-time Governor’s Professor of the Year finalist, and was the state and national Daughters of the Colonial Wars S.C. History Teacher of the Year.
Miller is a Center for Integrative and Experiential Learning Fellow for USC Salkehatchie. She has been an instructor for Graduation with Leadership Distinction since 2013, guiding students through the program culminating in leadership presentations at Discover USC.
Miller secured a $1.25 million grant from the S.C. Legislature for the preservation and stabilization of Pon Pon Chapel of Ease. She co-produced three documentaries about historic sites in the Salkehatchie Region: The Burnt Church: An Exploration of Pon Pon Chapel of Ease, On with the Show: Celebrating a Century of Allendale’s Carolina Theatre, and The Hut: A Legacy of the Works Progress Administration in Allendale South Carolina. Recently, she was awarded the prestigious Daughters of the American Revolution National Excellence in Historic Preservation Medal. She serves on the board and as historian for the Colleton County Historical and
Preservation Society.
Miller has previously served as interim associate dean, division chair and faculty organization chair at Salkehatchie. She has also served as Palmetto College Campuses Senate chairperson executive board member and rights and responsibilities committee chair.
