Carol Miller came to work at Eastern on Aug. 19, 1975. After 37 years of serving students, she will leave today.

“I will try to leave with a smile on my face and keep in mind the accomplishments that have been made,” said Miller, the deputy director of the Textbook Rental Service.

Each semester, thousands of students see Miller’s welcoming smile and hear the remnants of her Mississippi accent as she makes sure the textbook rental process runs smoothly.

Miller is originally from Westfield, Ill., and has also spent time in Mississippi, New York and West Virginia.

She recalled her first days at Eastern during fall textbook distribution when she had no prior experience or training.

“I can remember some of the first words of the director at that time—‘Just acknowledge that you heard me!’—I was a little intimidated but, as many can tell you, I have gotten over that part,” Miller said.

One of the most fulfilling aspects of her time at Eastern is being thanked by former students whom she has written hundreds of letters of recommendation and references for, she said.

“Just to see these ‘kids’ graduate, apply for employment or higher education, be hired or accepted, and go on to succeed fills me with great pride,” Miller said. “I like to think that I have had just a little to do with it.”

In 1995, Miller was nominated for Boss of the Year, and she said she values the family atmosphere she has with her colleagues in the department.

“I have been fortunate to work with an internal staff that is second to none,” she said.

President Bill Perry said he first met Miller during the summer of 2007 when he first came to Eastern.

At that time, the Textbook Rental Service was located at Pemberton Hall.

He recalled standing in line with students under the shade of the awning on move-in day and spoke to them about what they thought of the process.

“I saw her answering some of a student’s questions, and she was very caring, helpful and considerate, and those are the personal qualities that immediately come to my mind,” he said.

Miller also played an integral part in the transition to a new textbook rental facility, Perry said.

She said she has always kept the Textbook Rental Service’s focus on the students with what improvements can be made.

“We went from a manual, paper and pencil, extremely laborious process, riddled with uncontrollable flaws, student lines, affected by weather conditions, etc. to a home grown, specialized, state-of-the-art, radio frequency identification system that addresses literally all of the problematic issues we worked to overcome in our previous location and with our antiquated system,” Miller said.

“When people like Carol are with the university that long, they really become a part of the social fabric of the university,” Perry said. “It is impossible to replace that experience. You can find a successor but can never replace them.”

Rachel Rodgers can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].