‘Keep learning. Never stop’: Q&A with Michael Giangreco, ’77

Michael Giangreco, '77, returned to Buffalo State in May to deliver the keynote speech at the 2025 Horace Mann Graduate Research Symposium, hosted by the Exceptional Education Department. While he was on campus, Giangreco graciously gave us a few moments of his time to reflect on his Buffalo State experience, as well as offer advice to current students.

How did Buffalo State prepare you for your career?
It prepared me to be a special education teacher, which I did for several years. I went on to get my master's degree in special education in severe disability at the University of Vermont. I went on from there to be a special education administrator, and then on to Syracuse University for a doctoral degree in special education. I was on the faculty at the University of Vermont from 1988 until I retired in 2022.

What makes Buffalo State's exceptional education program special?
One of the things that really sticks in my memory is how early and often we had real experiences in schools and with students-both through regular coursework and also through a community service course where we had to do a certain number of hours in different recreation or community-based programs. Very early on, we had exposure to a variety of settings and a variety of children with unique needs. That was great.

Do any particular memories stand out?
While I was a student teacher, I organized a trip for the class I was working with to have a camping experience at Cradle Beach Camp in Angola, where I had worked for seven summers, and which has a long history of including children with a variety of disabilities with non-disabled children in the camp setting. We used the planning and entire experience-meals, activities, all the things that went into it-as learning experiences for the students, which were high school students with intellectual disabilities. It was a tremendous experience for the kids and they learned so much, because we were able to pull in literacy, math, and daily living skills, plus all the traditional things like making s'mores at the fire and sleeping in a cabin with sleeping bags. These were experiences that most of these kids had never had. And we had fun as teachers; it was really community building. Dick Lee, a Buffalo State professor and my student teaching supervisor, had also been a former Cradle Beach camp counselor-there were nice connections between this longstanding community resource and what we were doing at Buffalo State.

What, in your opinion, is the role of a teacher?
Being able to teach all the students that come your way, including students that have nonstandard needs. And it's not just kids with disabilities, but kids who come from families that have just moved here from other countries, or kids whose families are going through some kind of difficult times. As a teacher, it's so important to welcome those students and attend to their instructional and social needs. Have that mindset of inclusion; that forms the foundation for teaching and learning. Teaching takes a lot of work, but it's such a gratifying profession.

What advice do you have for future teachers?
My advice, particularly for elementary, middle and secondary teachers who aren't specializing in special ed but find themselves in a position where a student with disabilities in their class, is to really be the teacher for that student. Get to know that student. Recognize that those students might be pursuing different learning outcomes than your other students. It's great if they can do all the same things, but if they can only do part of it, or they need to do it differently, that's okay. It doesn't all have to be the same for every student; you can individualize. That can be really invigorating. As teachers, it's so important for us to also be learners. You always want to be learning new skills and ideas. Keep learning. Never stop.