News Archive

Sandy Miller, '82, has carried a passion for learning throughout her life and two careers—first as an English teacher and then as a lawyer at one of the nation’s largest health benefits companies.

Miller grew up in Morristown, Indiana, and became the first member of her family to attend college. After earning B.A. and M.A. degrees from Indiana State University, she taught English at Warren Central High School. Although she loved teaching, “I wanted to learn more. I craved more variety. I would have happily been a student for my whole life,” she says.

Miller briefly considered applying to medical school but focused on law school after taking an introductory evening class and being admitted to IU McKinney. She continued teaching while attending law school in the evening, an endeavor that took more than four years, but ended in Miller graduating summa cum laude.

“I really loved the challenge of law school. It was just a great, great environment,” she says.
Miller clerked for two years at the Indiana Supreme Court and then joined the legal staff of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Indiana (subsequently Anthem) where she served from 1985 until 2008, ultimately as the acting general counsel. From 2008 to 2012, Miller was the president of Anthem's federal government business. She retired in 2012.

Her husband, Bernie, who served on the faculty and coached basketball, tennis, and baseball at several high schools, is also retired. In 2018, they decided to channel Miller’s passion for learning and education into a fellowship assisting IU McKinney Law students.

“Law school was a real springboard to the kind of career that allowed me to give back,” Miller says.

The Sandy and Bernie Miller Fellowship is awarded to J.D. students who work in unpaid summer positions as part of their participation in the school's William S. and Christine S. Hall Center for Law and Health.

Eight law students have received fellowships during the past three years, including four Hall Center students who received fellowships for the summer of 2021.
 
“One of the best parts of establishing the fellowship is that I actually hear from recipients,” Miller says. “They have written to tell me about their lives, their time in law school, and how much the fellowship means to them. That is a really special kind of thank you, letting me know that this is working.”