After seven impactful years of serving the MFS community as an administrator, educator, mentor, colleague, and friend, Upper School (US) Dean of Students Will Miller plans to depart MFS at the end of the 2025-2026 school year to return home to Texas with his family.
After arriving during the 2019-2020 school year, which was the year of the pandemic, Miller began his journey at MFS by navigating the challenges of social distancing while also trying to connect and engage with the community. Over his time here, Miller described the multifaceted nature of his role as US Dean of Students, which, according to him, falls into three main categories: “academic support, discipline, and student life.”
The MFS community heard about Miller’s departure in April. Recently, on May 12, 2026, the community learned that current Math Department Chair and math teacher Elizabeth (Liz) Moore will serve as the interim US Dean of Students for the 2026-2027 school year.
For many students, Miller’s impact began before they even enrolled in MFS. US Student Laila Williams ’28 remembers her admissions interview with him fondly.
“When I was getting interviewed here, [Miller] was one of the people who interviewed me, and we had a really good conversation. Through the questions he asked me, I could tell that he really wanted to get to know me and really cared about what I had to say, and I really liked that,” said Williams.
That attentiveness and genuine connection with students became a defining characteristic of Miller. Ali Sabir ’26, who has developed a close relationship with Miller through serving as Agenda Co-Clerk for the past two years, laughed about the unexpected way it developed.
“Our clerk meetings used to start at 7:45 am, and no one would show up on time, so it’d be just me and just him. And in those 15 to 20 or so minutes, we would get to know each other pretty well. I asked him about his basement construction, what he did over the weekend, that kind of thing. So definitely a lot of different avenues I got to know [Miller], and I’m grateful for all of them,” said Sabir.
Miller’s presence extended beyond regular school hours. Zoe Dasgupta ’28, who worked with Miller as the sophomore vice president for the past two years, recalled a time when a Spirit Week theme day issue required urgent guidance.
“It was a Saturday night, and we actually had to get on a Zoom call with [Miller], and he took time out of his night and his personal life to help us deal with the situation and have a very open conversation about how we would address it with our grade,” said Dasgupta.
She continued to say that “it was really great because he is very dedicated to his role, and he helped us a lot with that situation. It just showed how he’s kind of always there for the students.”
Junior Class Secretary Lorelei Short ’26 echoed that sentiment, expressing her gratitude for having Miller’s assistance and advice during the stressful process of planning prom.
“We’ve been planning [prom for] almost a full year at this point… and it was this really funny [moment] when we were at prom, and he goes, ‘Are you glad that it’s over?’ [In that moment] we were all just very relieved that everything was over and he was really proud of everything that we put together,” explained Short.
Dan Zemaitis, Chester Reagan Chair for Quaker and Religious Studies and an MS/US teacher, described his relationship with Miller and being able to “talk a lot about the Eagles and football” with him.
“The fact that [Miller] bakes cookies is not something that you would think, but he always bakes cookies for the inclusive community forum, as well as other stuff. And he comes with really good recipes,” said Zemaitis.
US Department Chair and history teacher Mary Anne Henderson described how they appreciate working with Miller because they “get to be a genuine part of [themself] that not everybody fully understands.”
“The other thing about working with [Miller is that] I just think we have a lot of fun. We’re both from Texas, and so I think we’ve always had that connection, and it means we both love barbecue [and] we have a shared sort of sensibility around joking and having a good time,” said Henderson.
Chanelle Walker, Director of Diversity, Community, and Belonging, shared the impact that Miller had on her after working closely with him for three years.
“I think about how the way he shows up in his identity has been really powerful and impactful for me. As a Black man in predominantly white spaces, I’ve watched him try to support people, both in the moment, but [also] outside of the moment,” stated Walker.
“His ability to check in when all of the dust settles, to be the type of colleague who says, ‘How are you? Are you okay?’ in a very intentional way, help[ed] people feel seen and cared for, and that’s very much like a Dean of Students thing, but it’s an adult thing too,” Walker added. “For healthy adult relationships, to have colleagues who you feel seen by can be incredibly powerful.”
Miller echoed Walker’s comments when reflecting on his relationships with colleagues at MFS over the past seven years.
“The relationships that I have with colleagues who have come in here … and have disclosed to me how they might be feeling in the moment, and support that they might actually need or help with grappling with challenges, tend to stick out to me as the most meaningful ones,” shared Miller.
Miller described his departure as a decision rooted entirely in family values and responsibility.
“This is a 100% values-driven, family-driven decision … My decision to depart after seven years is fully about my responsibility to my family … so that I can be that balance for them, to be able to be as supportive [as possible] and provide the type of guidance they need,” he said.
Miller added, “It is a hard and difficult decision, and one that I didn’t know that I would be making. As time passes, I’m becoming more content with the fact that this is the next chapter in our lives, and that this is probably a necessary move.”
Many of his colleagues expressed their support for his decision.
Walker explained how there’s a part of her “that’s a little bit sad, because I got used to seeing this person every day, and I will miss that. [But] we have a friendship that’s beyond just being work colleagues, so I wholeheartedly feel like I want him to have every good thing that could possibly come to him at MFS or wherever he goes.”
When asked about how he hopes to be remembered, Miller kept his answer simple and personal.
“You know how sometimes you meet people and you say, ‘That person, they just get it.’ They understand even the unspoken words … I’ve tried to show up in people’s lives, whether it be students or adults, in ways where it becomes clear to them that I just get it, and I think that’s the one thing I would want to be remembered as — a person who gets it on a personal level,” he shared.
