Jada Miller, a first-year graduate student in the Communication Sciences and Disorders Program at the U of A, was awarded the Benjamin Franklin Lever Tuition Fellowship. This award is highly competitive and only given to qualified students who reflect both the U of A's commitment to academics and diversity.

Miller graduated in spring of 2020 with an undergraduate degree in communication disorders. Miller reported that she is pursuing a career in speech-language pathology, "because it is my passion to help others, and after taking the Introduction to Communication Disorders course, I know that this was the career path that would allow me to help people and their families in a meaningful way."

Miller is on track to graduate in May of 2024 and hopes to practice as a speech-language pathologist in Northwest Arkansas upon graduation. "My hopes are to ultimately to start my own private practice one day," Miller said. Rachel Glade, the program director of the Communication Sciences and Disorders program, stated, "Jada has proven she can persevere, and she is passionate about working with individuals with communication disorders. We have no doubt she will make our program and our profession proud in the future."

About Benjamin Franklin Lever: A native of Pine Bluff, Lever was the first African American student to receive a graduate degree from the Fayetteville campus. After earning a bachelor's degree from the Tuskegee Institute in 1938, he earned a Master of Science in agronomy in 1951, a Master of Education in educational administration in 1955 and a Diploma of Advanced Studies in 1964, all from the U of A. Lever taught at Arkansas AM&N College (now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff), was principal at several Arkansas public schools and was a dean at Shorter College. He died in 1980.