Cheryl D. Miller

Dr. Cheryl D. Miller is a designer, author, and theologian who is best known for her diversity, equity, and inclusion advocacy for Black graphic designers in the industry and marketplace. Miller holds a Master of Science degree in Communications design from Pratt Institute and received her B.F.A. from the Maryland Institute College of Art, with Foundation Studies completed at the Rhode Island School of Design. She also holds a Master of Divinity degree from the Union Theological Seminary in New York City. She holds the Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, and the Doctorate of Fine Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Fine Art and the Rhode Island School of Design. She is a member of the Board of Trustees, Vermont College of Fine Arts, and The President’s Global Advisory Board, Maryland Institute College of Art.

An accomplished, award-winning designer and businesswoman, Miller established one of the first Black women-owned design firms in New York City in 1984. Cheryl D. Miller Design Inc. serviced corporate communications to a Fortune 500 clientele, including BET, Chase, American Express, Time Inc., and Sports Illustrated; social impact corporate communications defining the Civil Rights Era. Miller’s influential article, “Black Designers: Missing in Action,” was published in 1987, followed by “Embracing Cultural Diversity in Design” in 1990 and “Black Designers: Still Missing In Action?” in 2016. Her current PRINT 2020 article, “Black Designers: Forward In Action,” is currently trending. Miller also wrote a memoir, Black Coral: A Daughter’s Apology to her Asian Island Mother (2013). Her personal work and archives were acquired by Stanford University Libraries, The Cheryl D. Miller Collection at Stanford University. She is further curating with Stanford Libraries and design colleagues "The History of Black Graphic Design in North America," an open-source database.