Our Work
Miller Fellowship
Above: Current and alumni Miller Fellows with Miller Rest Team leaders, Allandra Bulger and Monica Marie Jones, at a recent fellowship gathering.
When We Fund Rest, We Fund Joy
Over 15 years and through 57 sabbaticals and counting, the Miller Fellows program has honored outstanding, experienced leaders of McGregor-funded nonprofit organizations in metropolitan Detroit. The program supports these leaders in stepping away from their day-to-day responsibilities and in undertaking a self-designed sabbatical to rest and rejuvenate themselves.
In 2009, McGregor Fund President David Campbell instituted the Fellowship to honor Trustee Emeritus Eugene Miller for his years of distinguished leadership. He modeled the program after a fellowship created by the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust.
For the first few cohorts, the Fund focused on recognizing and nurturing leaders with a reprieve from daily responsibilities and encouraged them to pursue professional development and deepen mission-specific knowledge during their sabbatical periods.
When We Fund Rest, We Fund Justice
Since then, the program has evolved in response to what fellows tell us they need most: rest, recovery and renewal. After a two-year hiatus during the pandemic, we relaunched the fellowship with a new focus on rest as an essential matter of justice for our partners. Nonprofit executives, particularly those at smaller, community-grown and BIPOC-led organizations, carry extraordinary weight, and deserve extraordinary support in stepping away. This is especially true now, as leaders continue essential community care while working under intensifying resource limitations and unrelenting political pressure.
The 2026 Miller Fellows cohort is the Fund’s largest ever: 11 fellows, representing a total investment of more than $700,000. For the first time, each sabbatical award is also paired with additional funds dedicated to supporting the fellow’s team during their absence. We know that true rest requires knowing your organization is properly supported while you are away.
Milestones & Updates
