New College of Business dean excited to hit the ground running

One of the very first things that attracted Dr. Patti Miles to Central Washington University was the size of the institution and the type of students it attracts.

“I came from the University of Maine, located in the northern half of the state, where it is beautiful, densely populated with trees, and chilly and wet for much of the year,” said Miles, the new dean of the CWU College of Business. “CWU and Ellensburg are a welcome change, with their focus on educating the whole student, the safe small town, and the sweeping skies, and warm, windy weather.”

Miles was drawn to the opportunity to provide business education to the people of Washington in a manner consistent with her clear priority of prioritizing student success. Upon reviewing the strategic plan developed by the previous College of Business administration, she realized it reflected her own focus on educating the whole student, whatever background they may come from.

“I enjoy the process of working with students and helping them learn that they too can really succeed,” Miles said. “By believing in them and teaching them the value of showing up, I get to watch them go out in the world and make a difference.”  

This focus on holistic student success through coaching and mentorship has its roots in Miles’ early professional career as an Army officer, where she learned the importance of meeting people where they are and building them into the people she knows they can become. In her view, that transformation comes from a place of mutual trust and respect.

“I want students to feel heard and trusted when they interact with the staff, professors, and administrators in the College of Business,” Miles said. “I believe that students, like soldiers, learn what they see. If students hear and see faculty and staff treating others with respect, doing the right thing, and acting with integrity, they are much more likely to embody these traits later, too.”

Achieving that environment is predicated on fostering a community that can support it, a feat Miles plans to accomplish through a focus on student success. She ultimately hopes to establish a dedicated College of Business living-learning community (LLC), with a goal of helping students thrive.

“Building community is the most important thing you can do for your students,” Miles said. “With the creation of the LLC, when students come to the College of Business here at CWU, they will have access to a dorm that’s specifically organized for them to live, learn and grow; with opportunities to find their people and explore their education together.”

The LLC will be the foundation of the Student Success system within the college, running in tandem with a College of Business student ambassador program. These structural improvements will allow students to get involved as early as their first year, sharing their experiences with future cohorts on campus and at events across the state.

“There’s nobody who can sell your college like your students can,” Miles said. “I want to establish a set of college-level student ambassadors at all levels, to help them grow into professional positions, to coach and mentor each other, then send them off to career fairs across the state to make that first introduction. As these students progress, they’ll take on more responsibility and grow as professionals, even before they’re done in school.”

Aspiration is nothing without follow-through and delegation, as Miles learned through her military career, during which she worked her way up from platoon leader in the 82^nd Airborne Division to Brigade Executive Officer.

This emphasis on playing to the strengths of her team continued serving her well in her career at the University of Maine, where she progressed from an assistant professor role to associate dean.

“It is not possible to know your faculty as well as the department chairs know them, so my job is to empower college leadership with the resources they need to make the right decisions for their people,” she said. “While there’s no direct corollary between jumping out of an airplane and leading a business school, there is some broad overlap about creating trust and enabling leaders to flourish.”

Achieving these goals means creating more avenues for student voices to reach administrative ears, partially through the activation of the Dean’s Council. Listening to the challenges students face and the accomplishments that make them proud, and giving them the tools to succeed, is at the core of her priorities.

Miles knows that having direct access to their thoughts and feelings on everything from the faculty and curriculum to the furniture in the classrooms is the only way to clearly see the whole picture.

“Such things matter, they make life better for everyone,” she said. “I need to take the time to see the world through their eyes, and my job is to empower everyone I work with to embrace the student success model.”

That curiosity extends to the College of Business faculty as well, without whom Miles would have no school to lead. She plans to spend time teaching in the classroom, believing firmly that she can’t ask her people to do anything she would not gladly do herself.

As she prepares for her first full school year as dean, Miles knows that the best and only road to mutual success is one traveled together.

“I like the idea of leadership in higher education, because I believe in public higher education, and I believe that students, staff, and faculty members benefit from having someone believe in them,” she said. “That’s how I see my role: to help everyone in CWU’s College of Business accomplish what they want to accomplish.”