At barely 19 years of age, Miley Taylor, from Goshen, may be the youngest-ever graduate of Troy University’s Risk Management and Insurance Program.
On July 28, she’ll receive her Global Business degree with a concentration in RMI at Commencement Exercises in Trojan Arena but won’t be looking for a job. She’s already hired on with Auto-Owners Insurance as a commercial lines underwriter. The opportunity came on the heels of her internship.
“I knew I could prove myself to anyone: I just needed someone to be willing to take a chance on a (barely) 19 year-old,” she said.
Her high school graduation came just two weeks after her 17th birthday; she turned 19 on May 9, just two months shy of her college graduation.
Much of that confidence, she found in the Sorrell College of Business, and she credits several professors with instilling the trait that made her successful in a job search even before she graduated.
It was Dr. Ed Pappanastos and a chance parking lot conversation that led her to RMI in the first place, away from a general business major.
“It didn’t take much convincing for me, as Dr. P’s big smile and personality towards RMI was quite convincing,” she said. “I changed my major that same day.”
Being convinced to join the program was one thing, but Taylor said the support she got once she got into it was critical and led to her being a more successful student and person.
“In my first semester at TROY, Dr. Phillip Mixon was truly one of the most influential professors I have ever had. Being 17, with everyone else in my sophomore- or junior-level classes being 20 or older, it was hard to believe I was as intelligent as everyone else,” she said.
During her Principles of Economics course, Taylor said she felt herself struggling to comprehend some of the material.
“Dr. Mixon was an email away and would work out problems, give in-depth explanations and provide office hours to help me understand. After doing well in his class, I was so confident in the rest of my journey in college,” she said. “He taught me that I ‘had it in me’ to do and learn anything I set my mind to.”
Dr. Lane Eckis and Dr. William Fox were other professors who played a particularly important role in her journey at TROY.
“Dr. Lane Eckis has helped guide me, pray for me, lead me, pick me up when I fall and never ceased to give me encouragement when I was in need . . . I knew she would be there for me,” she said. “Dr. Fox helped me realize that we can always do good with our careers, and not everyone is called to do the same thing as someone else.
“He instilled in me a confidence in my work and pushed me harder than any other professor to be the very best at what I do, always,” she added.
Those lessons paid great dividends for Taylor in the job hunt. As part of the interview process at Auto-Owner’s, her work had to be audited and then presented to the regional vice president.
“She was very impressed and pleased with my work. I was always concerned my age would play a negative role in my future, but at Auto-Owners, it was impressive to those I met – especially after they had viewed any of my work. My age has been a positive, if anything, as it is encouraging to those with children or grandchildren to know it’s possible for their children to get ahead in their education as well,” she said. “I’ve been incredibly blessed to receive this offer to work for a Fortune 300 company.”
Taylor intends “to grow old” with the company. She’ll be eligible for the company’s retirement at 39.
“In every meeting I’ve been in about this job, I’ve been referred to as an ‘anomaly’,” she said. “It’s been interesting to hear all the things I can accomplish by the time I’m 50, since I’m getting to such an early start with my career.”
While Taylor knows there are more lessons yet to come, she has the confidence to know her TROY journey has prepared her to tackle them, and to help other students along with their own journeys.
“I would tell someone in a situation like mine to never give up. It is so discouraging to be the youngest one in your class, and there will be days when you can feel negativity coming from those around you, doubting what you plan to accomplish,” she said. “Always work hard. Push yourself harder than you think you can go. I have been told ‘no’ so many times during my journey. I have always found a loophole, a way around the word itself. Grammatically the word ‘no’ is a complete sentence, but to me, I accept it as an excuse to a true explanation.
“Never let someone tell you that you can’t do something, because if you want it bad enough, you can,” she said.
Her advice to students: “Find wonderful professors, friends and family members to support you. I promise you will never survive without having someone to cheer you on like I did. And, always keep this verse in mind: (1 Timothy 4:12) ‘Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.’”
