Dr. Miranda tends to two “hives”—one, a farm in Indiana where she and her husband nurture hundreds of thousands of honeybees; and the other, the bustling center of learning and research called the University of Illinois Chicago where Dr. Miranda is Chancellor.

To arrive at what Dr. Miranda calls “the best job in Chicago and the best job in higher education,” she first had to prove herself as a researcher, professor and university administrator. And she did, winning awards, recognition, and prestigious post after prestigious post at elite institutions across the U.S. The daughter of immigrants, she knew the importance of hard work and discipline in getting ahead. Yet when life handed her some tough choices, it wasn’t her brilliance but the values of love, commitment, and hope that led the way. She brings those same values to her leadership at UIC, the largest and only public research university in Chicago, known for giving young people who come from low-resource backgrounds the skills and education to build better lives for themselves.

You can read more about this amazing multi-faceted mathematician-professor-researcher- administrator-toxicologist-data scientist-apiculturist—and mother—here.