From Duck Bucks to Game Changers, Food Dudes to Purse Bingo, and Mallard Mania events that celebrate and support classroom learning, Moppy Miller’s latest Taylor Independent School District adventure as executive director of the Taylor Educational Enrichment (TEE) Foundation has been filled with creativity, forward thinking and a strong sense of networking that has come to be known as Team Taylor.
For Miller, the TEE journey began in 2016 with the reactivation of a previous education foundation that had become dormant, and a phone call from her mentor and good friend, Naomi Pasemann.
“Naomi called and said, ‘Mr. Vaughn (then superintendent) and I want you to be the executive director of the TEE Foundation,’ and I can’t tell Naomi no,” said Miller. “It all sounded great, and I’m for anything that helps kids and teachers.”
Miller grew up in Taylor, the daughter of 1948 Taylor High School grad Wesley Miller and Billie Miller, owners of Wesley’s Grocery, a mom and pop store on Davis Street that many locals will remember. She was a cheerleader in high school, graduating in 1971, and is a firm believer in the phrase, “Once A Duck, Always A Duck.” Her two sisters are also Ducks, and her phone has a Duck quacking as the ringtone.
Miller returned to Taylor ISD in 1980 as a teacher for a new class called Career Investigations. Mervyn Greer was the superintendent, Joyce Crow was the vocational director, and there was no textbook for this new and innovative program.
“Mr. Greer’s only question that I remember from the interview was, ‘How are you going to teach this course?’ and I said, ‘The best I can.’”
Miller recalls taking a similar approach when accepting the TEE Foundation’s leadership role.
“It was a figure it out as you go,” said Miller, “but there was already a history because it had actually started in 1985 and was just reactivated. A lot of work had already been done. There was also a solid board of directors that was fired up and ready to get it going.”
Since reactivating in 2016, the TEE Foundation has awarded 180 grants totaling $410,000 to Taylor ISD teachers. The goal is to support creative and innovative classroom projects that are not included in the regular school budget. Grants range from Duck Bucks, for funding smaller projects up to $250, to Mallard Mania grants, up to $2,500, and Game Changer grants, up to $25K per grant. The Tee Foundation also awards a $100 cash grant for new, first-year teachers.
In addition to the Career Investigations class, Miller has also taught history and marketing. During those early years, she traveled to San Marcos in the evenings to become certified to teach vocational classes and later completed a master’s degree in counseling. She became a counselor at Taylor High School in 1990 and continued in that role when she and her husband, Mickey, a former teacher and school administrator, moved to Red Oak.
Miller is well-known for her volunteer efforts in the community, including serving as co-chair for St. Mary’s Church renovation. Her current volunteer efforts include projects for the Williamson County Retired Teachers Association, supporting scholarships for seniors, and she has been named Taylor’s Citizen of the Year, Woman of the Year and Taylor ISD’s Teacher of the Year.
When asked why she invests so much of herself in the community, her answer is clear.
“It’s my turn,” said Miller without hesitation. “Someone put money in the bank for me to receive the Melasky scholarship in 1971. Someone passed the bond for this school to be built where I went to high school. I had amazing teachers who did really great things, like the Latin Club banquet we had in the old cafeteria. Someone did so many things for us, and now it’s our turn to make sure those great things continue for our kids and grandkids.” For the past six years,
Miller has focused much of her time on raising money to award educational grants, making it possible for teachers to implement creative and innovative classroom projects to enhance student learning. Her enthusiasm shows as she talks about some of her favorite projects.
“When Pasemann second graders received their microscopes, they were learning new vocabulary and seeing the legs on those little bugs,” recalled Miller. “I don’t think I touched a microscope until I was in high school, and now students have the opportunity of learning so much more at these younger years.”
Miller’s excitement grows as she talks about the Chess Club at Pasemann, and the grant that Legacy teacher, George Solano, wrote to enhance the school grounds and instill school pride in his students, and the book project that Lynn Bedard wrote for students at Taylor Opportunity Center.
“Many of Ms. Bedard’s students have trouble with reading, and she got books that are at their reading level but they don’t look like books for younger kids,” said Miller. “For the first time, she witnessed students talking about books and recommending titles for others to read. It opened up their eyes that reading is a good thing. She knew what her kids needed, and I am forever grateful for that because it had a huge impact.”
Miller’s personal collection of Duck Memorabilia continues to expand and includes her high school megaphone, wire light protectors from the Old Taylor High gym that have been repurposed with solar lights along her driveway, a piece of wood from the original gym floor, a Taylor Duck banner from the class of 1970 and a Drallam yard sign from1972 that all the players signed.
One of her most prized pieces of Duck memorabilia is an original door from the entrance of the Old Taylor High auditorium.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that my grandpa either varnished or painted that door when he was a maintenance person for the school,” said Miller. “Daddy’s Dad was a carpenter or maintenance person for the school. His shop was between where the old public library was and the maintenance and Ag building. When Mickey was stripping the door down, there were lots of layers, and when he came to a layer of Kelly green paint I said, ‘That’s it. Don’t go any farther.’”
With a total of 45 years in education, Miller plans to stay involved. She looks forward to volunteering with the TEE Foundation, St. Mary’s Church, the Williamson County Retired Teachers and wherever needed in the community.
Miller is the proud owner of a new Duck call that she is already learning to use to get ready for next year’s football games. With all the growth and accomplishments she has seen in the schools through the years, Miller said she is looking forward to a bright future with even bigger opportunities for the schools and the community.
“I just want to see our kids taking advantage of the enormous opportunities that will be available to them,” said Miller. “The impact of what Samsung is going to do for our kids will be great, and I want Taylor to realize this is a really good thing. Taylor students, both Ducks and Phoenix, will continue to fly high.”
