Rate My Professor Michelle Miles

Michelle Miles is an Associate Professor of English at Kennesaw State University, specializing in Literature, and serves as Director of National and International Scholarships and Fellowships in the KSU Journey Honors College. She earned her B.A. from Montana State University in 1999, M.Phil. in Anglo-Irish Literature from Trinity College Dublin as a 2002 George J. Mitchell Postgraduate Scholar, where her thesis examined Seamus Heaney's translation and adaptation of classical works, and Ph.D. in English from Emory University. Her doctoral dissertation expanded this focus to include contemporary Irish poets Michael Longley and Derek Mahon, investigating how they engaged with classical literature to journey to the underworld and bring voices of the dead into the living world. As a doctoral student, she met Seamus Heaney multiple times and worked with his original papers and manuscripts. Prior to Kennesaw State, where she received tenure, Miles was Associate Director of the University of Georgia at Oxford Study Abroad Program. Her research interests encompass Contemporary Irish Literature, Postcolonial Literature, Composition, Irish poetry and politics, and the impact of self-reflection practices in first-year honors pedagogy. She teaches honors courses such as those on Northern Ireland, featuring works by Seamus Heaney, Michael Longley, Paul Muldoon, and others, and has extensive experience teaching abroad.

Miles has co-authored significant publications with Rita L. Bailey, including "Kennesaw State University: Program Profile," which details the honors program's structure, including Honors Learning Experiences, first-year seminars, peer mentoring, and pathways to Honors Research Scholar or Honors Scholar designations, and "The Impact of Daybook Reflection Practices in the Honors First-Year Seminar," analyzing qualitative data from student journals using prompts like Saw, Said, Happened, Connected/Drawn to foster metacognition, content retention, personal growth, and interdisciplinary connections aligned with high-impact educational practices. These works emphasize reflective journaling's role in critical thinking, transformative learning, and honors education outcomes such as retention and lifelong learning. As Director, she mentors students for prestigious fellowships; she has guided all Goldwater Scholarship winners at Kennesaw State since 2019, supported Fulbright recipients, Boren Fellows, and others, enhancing students' global opportunities and academic success. Her contributions extend to honors program development and international scholarship advising.