Student Spotlight Noah Miller

Growing up, WVU was always a big part of my life and my family’s. My father has worked for WVU Medicine in the panhandle since before I was born. From some of my earliest memories, I can remember the gold and blue letters being in our house, as well as being given WVU shirts and other trinkets all the time. When I was asked about where I wanted to go to school, WVU was just naturally the first school to come to mind. It just felt right. 

When I first came to WVU, I was enrolled in Exercise Physiology. I did not know quite what I wanted to do. During my first semester, I quickly realized that it wasn't the right fit for me because I enjoyed more of the physical aspect of training rather than the science and recovery.

Strength and conditioning had always been a major part of my life growing up. I had always enjoyed the training and practice portions of sports more than the actual sport itself. I switched into physical education to focus on emulating my high school P.E. teacher. He was the strength and conditioning teacher and taught students how to lift weights, condition for sports, and prepare for life after high school, whether recreationally or collegiately. As I got further into the major itself, I found myself falling more and more in love with teaching students physical education rather than the lifting aspect I had originally set my mind to.

The program itself has prepared me extremely well for the next chapter of my life. The amount of hands-on experience alone has allowed me to develop not only my portfolio but also as a person. The program allows you to explore different opportunities within the realm of physical education such as teaching in an aquatic environment, college classes, preschoolers, elementary, middle, high school and also even adapted physical education. The opportunities built into the program allowed me vastly different teaching experiences that helped me find the area that best fit me as a teacher. They also provided well-rounded experience that has helped me with interviewing for different teaching positions and other jobs.

This program is a very tight-knit community and creates close bonds. The faculty within the program actively make time for you and want to get to know you as a person. They don’t see you as just another body going through their program, but as an equal. I have a great relationship with the faculty here, and it goes further than simply knowing your favorite sport or team, but also your interests, your goals, your character, or personality. They know when you're having an off day. The faculty make the program what it is, and you feel every day like you matter and are getting the most out of it. 

Additionally, this program gives you more opportunities than any other program I have heard of, with over 1,000 hours of experience in classrooms and other settings actively teaching and observing other teachers. Compared to just sitting in a classroom, actually getting hands-on experiences and being able to put lessons into practice, or being able to teach different levels to get more comfortable, is one of my biggest reasons why this program separates from others.

From my sophomore year to now, I have spent time in real hands-on experiences that have allowed me to cultivate my teaching style from a beginner to one that I am very proud of and passionate about. This past year, I have been student teaching full-time, which has been one of the biggest blessings I have had in my life. I have learned things I never would have learned in a classroom setting, but I have also become someone that I respect and am proud to be.

A piece of advice I would give to my younger self is to always be yourself, no matter what. Don’t be afraid to pursue your goals and dreams even if they do not align with what others want or think for you.

My post-graduation plans are to move back home to Winchester, where I am currently applying to different jobs. This summer, I am finishing up my master's degree in physical education teaching education, which I will complete in August. My long-term goal is to be an elementary physical education teacher.

The best part about being a Mountaineer is the camaraderie amongst the Mountaineer family. No matter where I go, there's always another Mountaineer, which allows us to share experiences and bond, which can only be found at WVU.