As we mark the final week of Black Heritage Month, we joyfully honor Dr. Arlette Miller Smith—a scholar, administrator, creative, advocate, mentor, and treasured friend of our organization.
At St. John Fisher University in Rochester, New York, where she is now an Emeritus Professor of English and African American Studies, Miller Smith dedicated 24 of her 50-year career to exploring the rich intersections of race and gender in African American women’s lives. Known as a BlkLiteraryHerstorian, she mentored countless students, developed engaging coursework, and celebrated African American resilience through her teaching, scholarship, and poetry, such as “We in Anticipation of You”—heard on NPR and CNN—and published in the best-seller Go, Tell Michelle. She also penned the Foreword for Dear Kamala: Women Write to the New Vice President (Brooks-Bertram, 2021).
From 1997 to 2021, Miller Smith left a lasting impact at St. John Fisher through her dedicated work. She established and served as the first Dean of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and Diversity Programs. Breaking barriers as the first female administrator on the University President’s Senior Staff, she introduced key initiatives to improve student life. These included the campus-wide Student Survey on Campus Climate (Race & Ethnicity) to better understand and enhance student experiences, the CONNECT program to mentor commuter students of color, and the Campus Diversity Advisory Board (CDAB), which brought together students, faculty, administrators, a Board Trustee, and alumni. Under her leadership, the CDAB delivered a detailed report with 19 recommendations for fostering inclusivity across the campus. She also co-chaired, alongside Dr. Lisa Jones of Nazareth College, a Regional Conference of the National Association of African American Studies and Affiliates (NAAAS), the NAAAS conference was the first known major academic conference co-sponsored by Fisher and Nazareth simultaneously on their respective campuses. Beyond her administrative roles, she also earned the rank of Associate Professor of English, founded and directed the African American Studies minor, and co-created the Leadership and Diversity course within the Executive Leadership Doctoral Program.
A native of Vicksburg, Mississippi, Miller Smith founded AKOMA, Rochester’s African American Women’s Gospel Choir, in 1995; it has raised over $263,000 in scholarships for college-bound Black women. Her dissertation, Speaking the Song, Spreading the Word, Lifting the People, explores African American gospel music as a source of inspiration. In 2018, she recited “A Gathering of Women,” a poetic keynote at the Seneca Falls Women’s March, captivating 10,000 attendees—including two first-year students from her Learning Community. Looking ahead to September 2025, she will be one of two featured Black Leaders at the In This Moment Book Launch and Panel Discussion at the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY.
We are privileged to celebrate Dr. Arlette Miller Smith’s inspiring legacy.
Learn more about her journey below.
