Travel is Learning
Turning pictures on Pages into Reality
Dr. Angela Marie Miller was born in Philadelphia, PA, and raised in Jacksonville, FL. Her fascination with education and travel began at home, where she played "school" with family members. The eldest child, born to her foreign-born mother, Angela, learned that lies and prejudiced mindsets hurt others. Because she witnessed the hardships of these behaviors, she escaped by reading everything: books, novels, magazines, encyclopedias, and newspapers.
Sadly, Angela does not remember one happy exchange between her parents as a child, so her joy was limited to a well-groomed playmate who lived across the street, Tony. Tony and Angela were in the same kindergarten class. They walked to and from school each day. Tony was funny and always made Angela laugh. He was also very perceptive and observant. One snowy day, Tony noticed Angela’s improper winter attire - plastic bag coverings on her sneakers after a winter storm blanketed the ground. Tony, the little neighbor and classmate, who had a very different upbringing than Angela, became her knight-in-shining armor for a total of six city blocks, to and from school, each day for three years.
Though Angela and Tony eventually lost contact with each other, Angela still thinks of Tony, her childhood protector, her childhood hero. Angela also knew she needed an escape, so she enlisted in the Army while still in high school.
For ten years, Angela had a rewarding career as a Behavioral Science Specialist in the Telecommunications occupational field, which also involved international travel. Lots of it! While residing abroad, Angela spent her spare time tutoring adults in English at local businesses. Upon ending her military career, Angela completed a Bachelor of Sociology at Valdosta State University.
While staffed as a high school teacher at an alternative school in Jacksonville, FL, Angela was awarded a full scholarship for a Master of Education in Student Services and Special Education at the University of North Florida. The morning following her graduation, Angela returned abroad, to Okinawa, Japan, where she taught high school literature, social science, and a college prep course with the Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA). Japan was followed by a return to Germany, where Angela was staffed as an AVID and ESOL Coordinator, and eventually Puerto Rico. After several years in the Caribbean, a welcome opportunity to return stateside took her to Fort Bragg, NC, where she discovered her dissertation.
Angela's worldly teaching career eventually landed her in Ankara, Turkey, where she retired after 35 years of federal and military service. Angela returned to Jacksonville, FL, where she started her own travel agency to continue feeding her passion for travel. “As I age, I reflect on the limitations my childhood placed on me, so I refuse to box myself in or to stop learning. Travel is learning. Travel provides a plethora of learning opportunities in person, turning pictures on pages into reality.”
