As the incoming student representative for NIU’s governing body, Kevin Miller might be the ultimate student to know.

Come next semester, the junior political science and English double-major will serve as student trustee on the NIU Board of Trustees. The trustees have an impact on every facet of life at NIU, including setting tuition.

Miller’s job is to voice student opinion and advocate for student interests both to the administration and the other members of the BOT. It’s a task that Miller relishes even now as he finishes his term as Student Association president.

“The opportunity to serve as student trustee will allow me to benefit the greatest number of people I have ever been able to,” he said. “I like student government because you actually get to do something. You get to get out there and get up to your elbows in whatever it may be and really actually make a difference for other people and get something done. It’s not just a routine job where what you do may or may not go through. With the student government, you actually get to implement things and see the results of them, and hopefully those results are positive.”

Shaun Crisler, SA president-elect and a member of Miller’s victorious ticket, met Miller a year-and-a-half ago and quickly formed a bond with him because of common beliefs and goals. Crisler said Miller is a pretty typical NIU student when you get to know him.

“Kevin is a very patient guy,” he said. “He doesn’t overreact or under-react to any situation. He is probably one of the most down-to-earth people you could ever meet.”

A native of Mascoutah, Miller attributes much of the way he is to his late father, Wayne Miller, who died while Kevin was in eighth grade.

“From what I remember and from the stories I hear now, I really try to live my life each and every day both personally and professionally in the same way,” he said. “It’s not about personal gain or fame or any of that stuff. It’s about making a difference and actually helping people.”

Some of Miller’s critics don’t see it that way, accusing him of being a deal man. That’s criticism that Miller soundly rejects.

“Whenever you are in a position as high profile as student body president of a university with 25,000-plus students, there always are going to be people out there who don’t like you for whatever reason,” he said.

In his spare free time, Miller enjoys hanging out with friends, going to movies and parties and, strangely enough, researching papers. After graduation, Miller plans to pursue a master’s in public administration and possibly a law degree at NIU.

As he segues into the student trustee position, Miller aspires to stem the tide of budget cuts and their detrimental effects on students.

“I hope that we can go through this budget crisis with the least amount of negative impact on the students,” he said. “At this point, the way it is looking right now is that it will be virtually impossible to completely eliminate negative impacts on students, but we have to make sure we limit those impacts as much as possible and make them less severe.”