Ty Kunzman ’20 plans to celebrate his Hamilton graduation by heading right back to school. In June he’ll begin work on his Master of Education in Student Affairs Practice in Higher Education at the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education and Development.
Hoping to eventually achieve a deanship in disability services, Kunzman said he realized that he wanted to work in disability services in higher education during his junior spring at Hamilton. “I have a minor disability, so I have laptop accommodations while I’m here,” he said. “That definitely factored in, just seeing how higher education accommodates students as opposed to making sure everything’s inclusive from the beginning. As a dean, I want to work toward creating environments that align with the Universal Design approach.”
Kunzman said that working with Hamilton’s Assistant Dean of Students Allen Harrison, who oversees accessibility services, helped him gain insight to the administrative processes involved in addressing disability in higher education. After receiving his acceptance to the Curry School, Kunzman met with Harrison to learn more about jobs in higher education disability and accessibility services and higher education in general. Looking forward, he aims to “facilitate similar experiences” that he had with Harrison with his future students.
Major: Government
Hometown: Spencer, N.Y.
High School: Elmira Notre Dame
Kunzman was attracted to the University of Virginia’s advanced and flexible academic curriculum and its track program. At the Curry School, he can sample courses outside his focus and have the encouragement to continue pursuing his athletics career. Moreover, the program requires that students complete an internship in higher education administration, which Kunzman expects will be an instructive experience.
At Hamilton, Kunzman juggles classes, sports, and helping to manage his fraternity. He completed two years on the football team and participated in track all four years. He also co-founded International Flavors, a club that highlights foods from around the world, and worked as chair of alumni relations for Delta Upsilon. Kunzman said that his extracurriculars helped him obtain even more perspective into administrative affairs.
“I’ve looked at a lot of statistics related to participation of students with disabilities in higher education, and compared to the general population, the number of students applying, enrolling, and who make it all the way through to graduation are significantly lower,” he said. “I think that’s something that needs to be worked on.”
Update 4/16/20: Ty Kunzman reflects on missing NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field championships in Elmira Star Gazette
