This summer, NIU faculty and staff mourn the death of a former NIU ombudsman and Chicago Housing Authority official.

Leon M. Miller, 44, died June 3, at about 11:15 a.m. in an automobile accident in northern Indiana from a massive skull fracture.

Miller was the first ombudsman for the American Nurses’ Association. He was featured in a New York Times profile for his 1974-75 work for the ANA.

In 1977, Miller moved to DeKalb to become the university ombudsman, where he mediated disputes involving students, faculty, or staff for three two-year terms.

“He was excellent as an ombudsman because that’s what he liked doing—helping people,” said Larry Bolles, director of NIU’s judicial office and a close friend of Miller’s.

In 1982, Miller became the first black member of the DeKalb County Board. There he attempted to create a liaison between university resources and county government and supported the development of an Equal Opportunity Employment program.

Miller also served as chair of the City of DeKalb’s Human Relations Commission.

After working six years as NIU’s ombudsman, Miller served a year as an administrative associate in the NIU Student Affairs Office. He left NIU in 1984.

Most recently, Miller served as president and CEO of the Urban League of South Bend, and worked as a development manager for the Chicago Housing Authority.

“Leon Miller touched many lives on the NIU campus,” Bolles said. “He was a fair and honest person. I very seldom ran into a student who didn’t know him,” he said.