Class of 2025: Isis Miller-Boyd brings life and career experience to her social work journey

By Sian Wilkerson

Isis Miller-Boyd doesn't have a ton of free time. She's a full-time counselor with the Virginia Department of Corrections and a mom to an energetic son. And she also has been a dedicated graduate student at Virginia Commonwealth University, where her studies - and her professional hopes - have been framed by her own life journey.

Miller-Boyd, who this month will receive her master's degree from the School of Social Work, said she has learned to extend herself the same "compassion, patience and support" that she offers her clients.

"I had to learn how to just take a deep breath," she said. "And then I also learned that if I can't get something done one day, I'll just pick it back up tomorrow. I had to learn how not to beat myself up about it."

Miller-Boyd felt called to social work by its power to change lives. After experiencing sexual violence early in life, she wants to be a voice for others who might be experiencing similar challenges. At the Department of Corrections, she works with incarcerated individuals, providing support and addressing psychological, emotional and behavioral needs.

"Everyone has a story," Miller-Boyd said. "We all have challenges that we have gone through. We all have things that we are overcoming, fighting silent battles, and [it's important] not to judge them based off the things that they did - because somewhere along the line, they lost their way. And they meet someone like Counselor Miller who is going to push them … to be the best version of themselves."

Miller-Boyd's higher education journey began at Richard Bland College, where she began as a psychology major. One of her professors, a licensed social worker, asked her to consider her field, and its broad application set her on a new course.

"I was like, 'Oh, this is me,'" Miller-Boyd recalled. "'This is what I want to do.'"

After receiving her associate degree, Miller-Boyd transferred to Virginia State University, where she studied social work and earned her bachelor's degree in 2018. Shortly after, she began working toward her master's. But when life got in the way, it became a lesson in patience and perseverance.

"I was just trying to rush, rush, rush, but the timing wasn't right," Miller-Boyd said. Eventually, she realized that "just because one person finished that race doesn't mean that's your story, or that that's your race. In due time, you will get to where you have to go."

Miller-Boyd, who welcomed her son at the age of 21, added that a lot of people doubted whether she could accomplish what she wanted to do - a fact that pushed her even harder, as did her religious faith.

This month, Miller-Boyd will share her story with her peers at the School of Social Work's graduation ceremony. She applied for a speaker role with the hope of sharing the power of positivity for anyone who might be experiencing doubt.

"Everybody has a journey," she said. "I know where I started and I know where I'm going" - hopefully to her own outpatient therapy practice, which she envisions as a way to reach even more people from all walks of life. She would also like to mentor young people, passing along trauma-informed guidance and coping skills.

For her son, who is now 9, Miller-Boyd hopes that her experiences can pass on a lesson of hard work and dedication.

"You're more than what negative things people throw at you," she said. "Sometimes you just have to prove them wrong. Stay silent and let your actions prove to them who you are."