Miller graduates with associate's degree at age 18

Abbie Miller is far from a typical 18-year-old.

Currently awaiting news of a year-long fellowship in Germany for which she’s applied, Abbie will graduate from Flathead Valley Community College with an Associate of Arts degree this month.

Miller was home-schooled by her parents, who run the Majestic View Ministry near Bull Lake, until age 16, when she passed the GED exam and earned her high-school equivalency degree. She made the decision at that time to attend the Lincoln County Campus of Flathead Valley Community College.

A self-described “crazy cat lady,” Miller said she wasn’t ready to leave her cats – and her parents – to move away for college. Intending to transfer after her first semester, Miller said she “simply fell in love with the campus and the faculty here” and decided to stay at the Lincoln County Campus to finish her associate degree.

Miller’s short past has been packed with community involvement. She volunteers for the Bull Lake Fire District and has participated in a large number of community events and festivals such as Nordicfest and the Fourth of July parade. She has performed with Libby Ballet and the Missoula Community Theater.

Bright as it has been, her past pales in comparison to her dreams for the future.

She is a candidate for the CBXY for Young Professionals fellowship program, which could send her to Germany for a full year to learn the language, study at a university for a semester and then work hands-on in her chosen field, communications, for several months.

Miller will find out early next year if she will advance to the interview phase of the fellowship competition. If she is selected for an interview, she should know by the end of February if she will be leaving for Germany in July 2015.

Ultimately, she dreams of studying law at Cornell University in upstate New York. “As a young child I got on the computer to research high-ranking schools and Cornell popped up on the list,” she said. “It just hit me, it felt right.”

After earning a law degree she wants to practice as a trial attorney because, “I like to argue,” she said.

Miller now works for Flathead Community College as the Lincoln County Campus recruiter. She praised the school and the faculty for helping to create her “amazing experience.”

“I don’t think people realize how fortunate we are to have this school and this great faculty here,” she said. “People should appreciate it and utilize it. It isn’t just the academics, but also the personal relationships with the faculty that have helped me grow as a person.”