Kelly Millenbah ’90 finds passion in both classroom and administration

Kelly Millenbah ’90, left, listens to a colleague.

A career in education brings together many passions for Kelly Millenbah ’90 of Mason, Michigan, now a college professor and administrator.

Millenbah majored in biology at Ripon and made trips to the Associated Colleges of the Midwest Wilderness Field Station near Ely, Minnesota. She remembers her experiences there as some of the most impactful of her life.

“After leaving Ripon, I knew I wanted to go on to graduate school,” Millenbah says. She wanted to be a wildlife biologist and her time at the field station confirmed that desire. She received a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in fisheries and wildlife from Michigan State University.

While working on her Ph.D., she discovered how much she enjoyed teaching and interacting with students while serving as a teaching assistant for a population analysis course.

“It really evolved from there,” she says. “I loved teaching and the more I learned about how students learn, it was clear that I had another new passion — teaching and learning.”

Halfway through her Ph.D., she was offered a faculty position. In that role, in addition to on-campus courses, she also led study abroad programs to Kenya, Australia and South Africa.

Now, at Michigan State, she is senior associate dean and director of academic and student affairs for the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources; and a professor in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife.

“My current position is 100 percent administration,” she says. “I oversee our college’s Office of Academic and Students Affairs and manage one of the main funding lines for the college.”

She appreciates both the classroom and administrative aspects of education. “I love being in the classroom,” she says. “Students are phenomenal. They challenge you to be a better you. I love their excitement and energy.”

As an administrator, though, “I get to work at a different level and effect change by influencing and shaping experiences that enhance our students’ ability to be successful,” she says.

While no longer regularly teaching, Millenbah continues to publish and engage in research, most notably in the areas of teaching and learning.

A good educator, she says, needs “passion to make a difference and passion to see the importance of affecting and supporting other individuals. That is critical. It’s important for us to be concerned about others and ensure they have access to the best classrooms, programs and curriculum.

“There is no greater gift that someone can give themselves than education. Your education can never be taken away from you. As an educator, we have the ability to shape and support students and give them all the tools possible to be effective leaders and global citizens.”