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12 CAVALIER CORNER BY MIKE SCANDURA F ROM THE BOSTON SUBURB of Easton, Mass., and North- eastern University to Longwood College to UNC Greensboro back to Longwood and finally to Charlottesville, Jane Miller blazed a path to Virginia. Although the atmosphere in the South was quite different than what she was used to in the Northeast, Miller settled in on Grounds pretty quickly. "My first reaction to the environment when I came down south was the pace," said Miller, who's retiring this spring after 35 years during which she held various roles in the athletics department. "I was most defi- nitely a Bostonian. I walked and talked fast. I wasn't sure I would I last in the sun. But when the sun came out in March, I figured this might work out. "I found out the pace wasn't so bad. It was nice." The pace Miller followed would leave many coaches and administrators shaking their heads. Since 2001, she has been the senior as- sociate athletics director for programs and the senior woman administrator. In this ca- pacity, she is the supervisor for men's golf, volleyball, women's soccer, field hockey, women's basketball, baseball and women's lacrosse. In 2014, she was the first senior women's administrator appointed to the NCAA's Division I Board of Directors. She chairs the ACC Men's Lacrosse Com- mittee and is a member of the ACC Wom- en's Basketball, Women's Lacrosse and Baseball Committees. Miller was appointed the Deputy Title IX Coordinator for UVA in 2013 and served in that capacity until the spring of 2016. But prior to becoming an administrator, Miller was a highly successful coach in field hockey and women's lacrosse. Over 12 seasons as the women's la- crosse coach at UVA, she compiled the most victories (144) in the history of the program, reached the Final Four six times, and won a pair of national championships in 1991 and 1993. In addition, her field hockey teams compiled a 100-65-7 record in nine seasons. "I decided I wanted to be a college coach," Miller said. "At that particular time, having a master's was a prerequisite to get- ting a coaching job at the college level. One of my undergraduate professors had moved to UNC Greensboro. It had one of the most prominent programs for physical education, and I wanted a lot of sports psychology courses in my master's. "From there, I had a chance to coach bas- ketball and lacrosse at Longwood College. I taught in the physical education department and coached those two sports. "When the job [coaching field hockey and lacrosse] opened at Virginia, a number of my colleagues urged me to apply for that position. "After 35 years I'm still here, and it was a great move for me. Most student-athletes played field hockey and lacrosse, which is why coaches coached both sports back then." Miller could have continued coaching ad infinitum. But that changed during Jim Copeland's tenure as the director of athletics and took another step when Terry Holland headed the department. LASTING LEGACY Jane Miller Dedicated Herself To Making UVA Athletics Great For Three And A Half Decades Miller, the senior associate athletics director for programs, is a 35-year veteran of the Virginia athletics department. PHOTO BY MATT RILEY/COURTESY UVA