They don’t have perfect SAT scores, but they deserve an opportunity

Keith Miller: I love the mission of Arizona State University to educate large numbers of students.

2 min readDec 30, 2020

My Story

My father was a liberal Protestant minister and my mother sang in the church choir. I grew up in the small town of Alice, Texas. During the week, my brothers and I would ride bicycles to school, where my mom was a teacher. On Sundays we would ride bicycles to church, where my dad would preach a sermon.

The family, school and church were so mutually reinforcing that they seemed to be a single institution. My parents were seriously devoted to their communities and were the least narcissistic people you could ever meet. So I try to emulate them.

Why I Give

I love the mission of Arizona State University: to educate large numbers of students. All kinds of them. I think ASU’s devotion to both inclusivity and to research makes it unique. That double mission offers a model that other large state universities can and should and will imitate. I donate to ASU because of my affection for the university as an institution and for ASU in particular.

What I Care About

I donate to the ASU program for undergraduates who grew up in foster homes. Parents can be noticeably flawed. Teenagers often rebel against their parents. But these undergraduates don’t have parents, as we commonly understand the term. Where are they supposed to go for Christmas? They don’t have perfect SAT scores, but ASU strives to give them an opportunity. Not too many universities do that, especially not many with large national reputations.

“I think ASU’s devotion to both inclusivity and to research makes it unique. That double mission offers a model that other large state universities can and should and will imitate,” says English Professor Keith Miller.

‘Why I Give’: Stories from ASU faculty and staff