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Home / Academics / Academic Majors / Government / Government Faculty and Staff / LCDR Abigail Miller

Abigail Miller, J.D., M.A., Lieutenant Commander, USCG

Government, Director of Law Department of Government

CGA wordmarkLieutenant Commander Miller serves as the Director of Law in the Department of Government at the Coast Guard Academy where she oversees the instruction of all core cadet legal classes and instructs cadets in various legal topics. She is the lead advisor to the Cadet Law Society.

Lieutenant Commander Miller previously served as the Deputy Staff Judge Advocate and as an ethics official for the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. The office furnishes legal advice to the Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, and all other Academy divisions in areas of law that include federal ethics, fiscal law, contract law, environmental law, real property, claims, administrative law, use of non-appropriated funds, the cadet disciplinary system, employment law, and military justice.

In the winter of 2017, Lieutenant Commander Miller served for three months as a member of the Navy’s Consolidated Disposition Authority’s (CDA) legal team for the Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA) cases. The team analyzed thousands of pages of evidence, coordinated with federal investigators, answered FOIA requests, and briefed the CDA on possible case dispositions.

Lieutenant Commander Miller has held various other assignments in and out of the legal specialty throughout her career including, deck department head on CGC ALERT (WMEC 630), patrol boat Executive Officer aboard both the CGC CHINCOTEAGUE (WPB 1320) and CGC KEY LARGO (WPB 1324), Assistant Staff Judge Advocate for the CGA, and Personnel Support Branch Chief of the CGA.

Born and raised on Orr’s Island, Maine, Lieutenant Commander Miller loves the water and the outdoors. She currently resides in Ledyard, Connecticut with her husband, three children, and dog.

Education

  • J.D. with a concentration in Trial and Appellate Advocacy, Suffolk University Law School
  • M.A. in International Relations and Conflict Resolution with a concentration in International and Transnational Security Issues, American Military University
  • B.S., Electrical Engineering, U.S. Coast Guard Academy

Courses Taught

  • Principles of Criminal Justice and Maritime Operational Law
  • Standards of Conduct
  • International Law
  • Constitutional Law
  • Law of Armed Conflict

Honors and Awards

Lieutenant Commander Miller’s military awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, Coast Guard Commendation Medal with Operational Distinguishing Device, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Commandant’s Letter of Commendation with Operational Distinguishing Device, and various service, unit, team, and other personal awards.

Professional Affiliations

LCDR Miller is licensed to practice law in Massachusetts.

Contact Information

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Sponsor Family Application

Thank you for submitting your application to be part of the Sponsor Family Program. Your application will be processed in the upcoming week. Coast Guard Academy’s policy on background screening now requires all adults (everyone 18 and older living in the home) who volunteer to mentor, teach, coach or sponsor cadets, whether on or off Coast Guard Academy grounds, to be screened every 5 years. They are required to provide personal information (name, birth date and social security number) for the purpose of conducting a criminal background check.

The Security Officer at the Coast Guard Academy, CWO2 Gina Polkowski, is overseeing this process. Her email is: Gina.M.Polkowski@uscg.mil.

Sponsor Family designations fall into several different categories. Below are the guidelines to help you determine how best to meet the background screening requirement:

  1. If you are Coast Guard active duty you do not need to apply for an additional Background Check. You will be vetted through the Coast Guard system by CWO2 Polkowski.
  2. If you are a Civilian working for the Coast Guard you do not need to apply for an additional Background Check. You will be vetted through the Coast Guard system by CWO2 Polkowski.
  3. If you are non-Coast Guard Active Duty, you are required to provide proof of your current security clearance or National Agency Check that is to be emailed by your Command Security Officer (CSO)/ Security Office to CWO2 Polkowski at  Gina.M.Polkowski@uscg.mil.
  4. If you are non-Coast Guard civilian who has a current security clearance or National Agency check, you are required to provide proof of your current security clearance or National Agency Check that is to be emailed by your Command Security Officer (CSO)/ Security Office to CWO2 Polkowski at  Gina.M.Polkowski@uscg.mil.
  5. All civilians in the families who are 18 years or older and do not have a security clearance or a National Agency Check are required to be vetted through Mind Your Business, the third party vendor hired by the Coast Guard Academy for the vetting process.

After you complete your application, please e-mail the Sponsor Family Program Coordinator at CadetFamilySponsorProgram@uscga.edu. In your e-mail, you must include the e-mail address and phone number of every adult living in the home. The Sponsor Family Coordinator will then initiate the background check process and you will receive an email with further instructions.

Important things to note:

There is a Sponsor Family Training that is a one-hour training which we ask sponsors to attend once every four years. This training is designed to give you an overview of the program, what is expected of you as a sponsor, and what you can expect from your cadets. This training will also help familiarize you with the cadet regulations onboard CGA. You will be notified via e-mail once the training is scheduled.

The matching process of swabs to families will occur during July and August. Please bear with us and remain flexible through this process. There will be a meet and greet scheduled on Campus, typically in late August. This will give families an opportunity to formally meet their cadet if they have not already done so. Details on this will also be via email.

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