Miles Accepts New Position
April 25, 2008
Dr. Michael Miles, Chair of the Department of Fine Arts at Southeastern Oklahoma State University has accepted the position of Director of the School of Music at the University of Southern Mississippi. In his new position Dr. Miles will oversee 25 degree programs through the doctoral level, 450 music majors, and 42 faculty on the main campus in Hattiesburg, and a branch campus in Gulf Port. The School of Music at Southern Mississippi has a national reputation for its performance and academic standards in undergraduate and graduate music programs.
Dr. Miles states, "There are so many reasons for accepting this position that it is impossible to list them all. It is simply a wonderful professional opportunity for myself, and an opportunity for my family to be much closer to relatives in the region. Like all universities in these times of funding cutbacks, Southern Miss has its challenges, but the university, community, and personnel resources available at USM put it in a position to meet those challenges and continue moving forward. The challenges of graduate programs and the resources of a Division I, Research I institution were simply too appealing to ignore."
Dr. Miles leaves behind a legacy of excellence, and caring. "I poured my heart and soul into Southeastern and Durant during my time here. I can look myself in the mirror knowing that every day I did my level best to make this a better place our students, our community, and our faculty," adds Miles. "If I had some successes and raised the standards and expectations in our Fine Arts programs along the way, then I leave proud of those accomplishments. I leave with no regrets and a heavy heart. I always wanted to stay in Durant and teach at Southeastern, but opportunities such as this do not come around twice in your life. One has to recognize the cosmic alignment in the timing of the Southern Mississippi position being open and my personal and professional goals changing. I love Southeastern and everyone here. If Southeastern could have offered the same opportunities, I would still be here."
Under Dr. Miles' guidance the Music and Visual Art programs successfully merged in 2004 to create the Department of Fine Arts. This past fall the music programs reached the 100 major mark for the first time in recent history, and the Graphic Design program in the Visual Arts continues to grow into one of the most successful new programs on campus. Miles states, "I always believed you attract quality by being of quality, and the faculty and I have worked extremely hard at making sure the Fine Arts programs met the highest standards so we could attract quality students who will become quality artists and educators. We are proud of the standards we apply to our programs, and the music program's national accreditation is evidence of those standards. The university has been very supportive of the arts programs during my tenure, and I'm sure that support will continue under new leadership. The value of a quality arts program on a university campus cannot be overstated. I am proud to have led programs, faculty, and students who exemplify the very best Southeastern has to offer."
