Miranda Summers Lowe is a United States Army Major who currently serves as the Army National Guard Historian at the National Guard Bureau. She has previously served as a Senior Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technologies on the National Security Council, a Legislative Liaison for the National Guard Bureau, and an Army Congressional Fellow for the United States House of Representatives.
Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, and raised in Muncie, Indiana, Summers Lowe graduated from the Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and the Humanities in 2001. She initially enrolled at George Washington University, but the September 11, 2001, attacks prompted her to enlist in the Army National Guard. While serving as a Unit Supply Specialist, she continued her education at the College of William and Mary, earning a Bachelor of Arts in History and Government in 2006. Weeks before graduation, she deployed to Iraq, where she served as a Black Hawk helicopter door gunner.
After returning from deployment, Summers Lowe pursued graduate studies, earning a Master's degree in Public Humanities from Brown University in 2009. During her time at Brown, she co-founded the Student Veterans Association to support fellow veterans transitioning to academic life. She later went on to a Master's degree in Legislative Affairs from George Washington University in 2021.
Summers Lowe's military service includes deployments to Iraq and Djibouti, and she served on the team that authored the U.S. Army's first official history of the Afghanistan conflict. Her scholarly work has been published in
Beyond her professional roles, Summers Lowe is actively involved in military history and veterans' organizations. She is on the board of governors of the Army and Navy Club of Washington, D.C., is a trustee of the Society for Military History, and formerly served as a Modern Military Curator at the Smithsonian Institution and a trustee of the Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection at Brown University.
Summers Lowe's career exemplifies a commitment to bridging military service and historical scholarship, contributing to a deeper understanding of contemporary military history and the experiences of service members.
events include Women's Roles in the Military Luncheon and Mini-Officer Women Leadership Symposium
events include Salute to the Armed Forces Gala and the Presidential Inauguration of Joseph Biden
includes jacket, pants, bra, long sleeve shirt, two t-shirts, socks, gloves, military identification tags, wallet, and digital camera holder
includes U.S. Army, Lowe, Summers Lowe, Captain rank insignia, and Military Police Brigade insignia
This collection consists of the personal and professional papers of Miranda Summers Lowe, Army Major, Army National Guard Historian with the National Guard Bureau, and Brown University class of 2009 A.M. Summers Lowe deployed to Iraq in 2006 and the Horn of Africa in 2014. Materials include awards, correspondence received during deployments and Officer Candidate School, graduation programs, photographs, reference cards, and Summers Lowe's combat uniform from her deployment to Iraq. The collection dates from 1990 - 2024, but the bulk of the materials date from 2006 to 2024 and are arranged into 4 series.
Series 1, PERSONAL MATERIALS, 2006 - 2023, includes planners, Christmas cards from Summers Lowe and her husband Justin Lowe, correspondence received during deployment to Djibouti, event materials for military and government events as well as events at Brown University, and photographs. Also included is the iPod Summers Lowe used while deployed to Iraq in 2006. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type.
Series 2, PROFESSIONAL MATERIALS, 2006 - 2024, includes awards, military service records, graduation programs from Officer Candidate School, the Defense Information School, and Command and General Staff Officer Course, military identification tags, and various patches. Of particular note is Summers Lowe's combat uniform worn during deployment to Iraq in 2006. Uniform pieces include jacket, pants, bra, long sleeve shirt, two t-shirts, socks, gloves, wallet, camera holder, and combat gauze. Uniform patches are also included. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type.
Series 3, PRINT MATERIALS, 1990 - 2023, includes booklets from The White House and reference cards regarding topics such as individual safety and venomous arthropods. Also included are messaging guidance cards for various events Summers Lowe staffed and a Workplace Re-Entry Guide During COVID-19 for the Pentagon Reservation. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type.
Series 4, RESTRICTED MATERIALS, 2007 - 2024, contains a courier authorization card, an entry permit and trekker's details card to hike Mount Kilimanjaro, and passports. The personal information on the entry permit and trekker's detail card was redacted and photocopies of the documents are available in Box 1, folder 21. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type. These materials are closed until January 1, 2075 after which date they will open without restriction.
All researchers seeking to publish materials from the collections of the John Hay Library are requested to complete a Notice of Intent to Publish, prior to reproducing, quoting, or otherwise publishing any portion or extract from this collection. Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine the owners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessary permissions from them.
Miranda Summers Lowe papers, MS-2025-011, Box [#], Folder [#], Pembroke Center Archives, John Hay Library, Brown University.
This collection is arranged into 4 series.
There are no restrictions on access for analog materials, except for Series 4, Restricted Materials, which is closed until January 1, 2075 after which date it will open without restriction. The collection can only be seen by prior appointment. Some materials may be stored off-site and cannot be produced on the same day on which they are requested. Advance notice is required to view born-digital records. Born-digital materials in this collection may not have been reformatted yet. Researchers may request access to copies by contacting the John Hay Library with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed to hay@brown.edu.
Gift of Miranda Summers Lowe beginning in 2024.
See also, Summers Lowe's oral history conducted in 2021 as part of the Pembroke Center Oral History Project: https://sites.brown.edu/pembrokeoralhistory/2023/07/26/miranda-summers-lowe-class-of-2009-ma/