Mom and daughter earn SUNY Cortland degrees together

05/19/2026

As names were read at Friday evening's SUNY Cortland Graduate Commencement, Kayla Wyckoff M '26 followed in her mother's footsteps - literally.

That's because Kayla and her mother, Alicia Wyckoff M '26, earned their master's degrees in childhood education together. Although there's a 26-year age difference - Alicia is 48 and Kayla is 22 - both pursued SUNY Cortland's accelerated online M.S.T. program at the same time.

On Friday, they were announced and hooded in succession on the Park Center Alumni Arena stage.

Alicia walked first. As she did, Kayla shouted, "That's my mom!"

"It was really exciting," Alicia said. "You know, not many people get to graduate with their mom or graduate with their daughter. It was a pretty big milestone."

Both mother and daughter share deep admiration for each other as well as their family's connection to teacher education.

When Kayla was 9 months old, Alicia graduated with her associate's degree from SUNY Broome. Alicia worked in an administrative assistant role in the Union-Endicott (N.Y.) School District for 19 years before returning to school, eventually earning a bachelor's degree in human development from SUNY Empire in 2024.

"I was only planning to go that far," said Alicia, explaining that most education positions she sought required a master's degree.

She was also motivated by Kayla, who had recently graduated from Binghamton University with a bachelor's degree in human development. Kayla wanted to attend SUNY Cortland because her grandmother - Alicia's mother Janice Strauss - was a student teaching supervisor for the university.

"Kayla said, 'Mom, I'd really like to go to college where grandma worked,'" Alicia recalled. "So then I looked into it and I said, "You know what? I'm doing it too.'"

In addition to having a mother who was a Spanish teacher, Alicia's father was a longtime business teacher, too. And her husband, Marty Wyckoff C.A.S. '05, will retire at the end of this school year after a long career as a guidance counselor in the Union-Endicott School District.

Alicia took five classes last summer and five in the fall, along with her practicum, and completed her student teaching two days before graduation. Kayla will student teach in the fall.

Both she and Kayla would eventually like to teach in a fourth or fifth grade classroom.

"I think, at this point in my life, I appreciated (earning my master's) much, much more," Alicia said.

Sharing the moment with her daughter was even more special. Kayla is the oldest of three daughters. Her two younger sisters, ages 11 and 8, both have succeeded with nonverbal autism due in large part to collective family support from Alicia, Marty and Kayla.

Alicia explained that Kayla always excelled as a student while prioritizing care for her sisters and family.

"I can't say enough about her," Alicia said. "She's my right hand."

Their admiration for each other is mutual. Alicia praised her daughter's work ethic and compassion while Kayla continues to follow a role model who embodies the spirit of lifelong learning.

"To do this together added to the life that we have," Alicia said. "It almost seems like it was meant to be. It was great."