Rusti Miller-Hill: College is Not a Dream Deferred
In late August, we received the sad news that CCF's long-time friend, alumna, and partner Rusti Miller-Hill, suddenly passed away. Rusti joined CCF in August 2007 and remained a vibrant member of our community for over a decade, which included being part of the Speaker's Bureau and representing CCF on funder visits.
Before Rusti's passing, she had shared her story and plans for the future as part of CCF's 20 Years, 20 Stories Campaign. Below is her story as she had approved it. It is a powerful testament to what it means to be resilient, live with passion and determination, and how important it is to live a life of meaning and purpose. Rusti will forever be remembered for the mark she left on our community.
Russelle Miller-Hill, known affectionately to her loved ones and CCF family as Rusti, has been with CCF for over ten years. Growing up, Rusti didn’t think much about college. No one in her family had achieved a higher education, and when Rusti became a parent at age 15, she focused solely on raising her child. “Being a single mom was hard,” Rusti remembers. “I started rethinking what my life could look like when I was 18 or 19, and I’d heard of single moms going to college. So that became my dream.” Unfortunately, Rusti’s life took a sharp turn when she was introduced to drugs. “It changed my whole life trajectory. I ended up incarcerated at Albion Correctional Facility.”
While incarcerated, Rusti tried to take college courses, but an outstanding student loan stopped her from enrolling. Upon her release, Rusti went straight to CCF. CCF helped Rusti create a payment plan for her debt, and enroll in a Bachelor’s degree program to start her journey toward achieving her dreams.
From that point, Rusti was a fixture in the CCF office.
“There was no support for formerly incarcerated people on campus. CCF was the best - it was a place where we could talk about the experiences of incarceration, the impact it had on our lives, and all the doors that were closed to us.”
Rusti had had firsthand experience with closed doors: at her first job post-release, Rusti was told, “If you only had a degree, I’d make you the director of my program.” Instead, Rusti was responsible for training her higher-ups who had much less experience but who did have college degrees. “That was a motivator for me,” Rusti muses. “It propelled me to get my Bachelor’s degree.” While earning her Bachelor’s, Rusti was simultaneously building a strong network through various opportunities at CCF community.
“I went to community meetings, did the financial education workshops, joined the outings, everything. [CCF also] helped me build relationships with my kids. This was a place where I could find people who understood my experience and we all had a common goal.”
After Rusti finished her Bachelor’s degree, she began working for New HOUR for Women and Children, a reentry program for women on Long Island. “I was so grateful that I was asked to build an idea into a program,” Rusti remembers. The program was very new, and there were almost no reentry services available in the area. As she built the program, Rusti noticed a trend:
“I realized that a lot of the women were in the same type of profession. A lot of them were home attendants and had no idea how to move beyond that. From my experience at CCF, I knew that there were more options for them. I thought that if we were going to be the only reentry agency available to women in that area, we needed to provide more opportunities for their advancement.”
In 2017, Rusti brought CCF’s new CCF’s THRIVE Technical Assistance training to New HOUR, which the organization still uses today to effectively support the women they serve - including a higher-education focused component added after THRIVE training.
In 2017, Rusti rejoined CCF’s Academic Support Program for support earning her Master’s degree in Organizational Management and Leadership from Hunter College.
“I had gotten my Bachelor’s to get a better job, but the Master’s was something I felt I owed myself. My Academic Counselor, Angela, really challenged me to push myself,” she says.
Remembering what it was like to work with Rusti, Angela says “Rusti was always ready for the next endeavor. Her plans, academic and professional were methodically put together. She presented her ideas, and we just tweaked them a little and she was ready to shine… It has been a pleasure and an honor to be her counselor.”
While earning her Master’s, Rusti landed a position with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office as a Reentry Coordinator for their community partnerships. She has been working with directly impacted people in the program for several years now, and in 2019, Rusti graduated with her Master’s degree. She also joined the Board of the Legal Action Center, which partners with CCF through the NYC Alternative to Incarceration and Reentry Coalition.
“I’m not sure what’s next for me, but I know I’m not done yet,” Rusti says. “I’m getting excited about the possibilities for my future. I’m doing an online course with Kimberle Crenshaw, and I’m now applying to her summer institute. She’s ignited something inside me. I’m thinking about getting a Ph.D., doing more research, and maybe becoming a teacher. So there are definitely some good things coming down the line.”
Ultimately, what impact has education had on Rusti’s life?