Proficient in clinical social work and addiction treatment, which encapsulates adolescent residential treatment, substance abuse prevention and narcotic addiction, Marilyn J. LeVee Miller Broka retired in 2000 after working for nine years as a program supervisor at Southland Counseling Center in Lansing, Michigan, previously serving in a number of other roles. She first joined the center as a senior mental health therapist in 1981, remaining in this position for seven years before moving up the ranks to supervisor for one year. She began her professional career as the residential area supervisor/counselor at the Adrian Training School in Michigan in 1961, where she stayed for the next 12 years. Ms. Miller Broka then became a clinical supervisor at Sunny Ridge Home for Children in Illinois from 1973 to 1976 and prevention specialist in the Focus Progressive section of the Community Mental Health Authority of Clinton, Eaton & Ingham Counties (CMHA CEI) from 1976 to 1981, eventually going on to direct Lansing’s Comprehensive Substance Abuse Treatment Progressive from 1989 to 1991.
Before the start of her career, Ms. Miller Broka pursued a formal education at Olivet Nazarene University in Kankakee, Illinois, earning a Bachelor of Arts in 1961. She then matriculated at the University of Michigan, where she attained a Master of Social Work in 1967. In addition to these academic honors, Ms. Miller Broka is a diplomat of the American Board of Clinical Social Work and was certified case presentation method evaluator through the CRC/AODA between 1988 and 2000. Ms. Miller Broka started out working with people who had problems and latched onto her career goals very early; it was a creative experience. She joined a sociology club in college, and that club visited the major institutions and work sites of social workers. They had tours of programs, and she saw roles for herself.
Ms. Miller Broka became involved in her profession because she was interested in good human relationships in the family and community, as well as behavioral issues. She was particularly interested in young people and in helping them, especially ones with behavioral issues. When she finished college, she landed her dream job working with kids, especially girls who were in the custody of the state of Michigan. She was responsible for cleaning them up and confining them because they were not allowed back into the community. Civically involved, Ms. Miller Broka served on the board of directors for the Parkwood YMCA from 1984 to 1987 and secretary of the board of the Lansing First Church of Nazarene from 1984 to 1989. Later on, she was co-chair and news editor for the Lansing Area Polio Support Group and secretary of the board of St. John’s Lutheran Church from 2010 to 2017.
The highlight of Ms. Miller Broka’s career was introducing programmatic changes in the cottage home life for her clients, who were confined, by shortening their stay in half or more through the therapy she provided. She believes early childhood development is absolutely crucial to later personalities and she has enjoyed watching people grow and establish themselves, as well as seeing them climb out of their problems to responsible functioning. The mentors who inspired and motivated Ms. Miller Broka were her major professor of sociology, F.O. Parr, who was a strong influence, and Eulain Murphy, who was her supervisor and mentor when she entered the work force.
Now retired, Ms. Miller Broka resides in Michigan and sews in her spare time. She was also selected for inclusion in the third edition of Who’s Who Among Human Services Professionals, the 22nd and 23rd editions of Who’s Who of American Women, and 57th and 58th editions of Who’s Who in America.