15-year journey culminates with degree from UAlbany (with photo gallery)

When Katherine Czajkowski stepped across the stage at the University at Albany’s SEFCU arena Sunday to receive her degree in urban studies and planning, it was the culmination of a nearly 15-year journey that saw her overcome the loss of her home and cancer, and juggle a full-time job and schoolwork.

“There were days where it was overwhelming,” Czajkowski said in a telephone interview before the ceremony. “For the most part, it worked. I don’t know how it did, but it did. I have a very supportive and understanding family so I think that helps.”

Czajkowski, 49, had always worked full time and gone to school part time. Family members, including her husband, Michael, and two daughters, would pitch in to help with the cooking and the cleaning so she could focus on her schoolwork.

Czajkowski was working for the town of Rotterdam as a secretary and typist and was eventually promoted to engineering aide. During that time, she said she really became interested in finding out how planning is done on a large scale.

“A lot of time planning is done on a site-by-site basis. Getting to think beyond the project boundaries is a big step,” she said.

Home damaged

In 1997, Czajkowski was forced to move when a massive water main break spilled 2.5 million gallons of water, severely damaging her family’s Willow Street house.

“It basically pushed our house off its foundation — filled it with about 18 inches of muck,” she said.

The family would have needed a waiver to rebuild on the lot because it was too small. So they moved to a different part of town.

In 2000, the family suffered another shock when Czajkowski was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer at the age of 37.

“It was pretty much a roller coaster,” she said. “You have a goal in mind. Your goal is to ultimately beat this and survive and live a long and healthy life.”

That year was a blur as Czajkowski recalled feeling bad before and after treatment and then feeling better.

She took a few years off after receiving a degree from Schenectady County Community College during the 2004-05 school year. She had anticipated enrolling at the University at Albany’s School of Social Welfare. However, she had been promoted at work and got involved in the storm water management program. That sparked her interest in the environment and ultimately led to a new job. In October, she started working for Cornell University’s Water Resources Institute as Mohawk River watershed coordinator. The goal of the program is to increase the appreciation for and access to the Mohawk River’s natural resources.

“It’s very challenging but it’s very exciting as well to be on the ground floor of something,” she said.

Czajkowski is now pursuing a master’s degree in urban planning. She encourages other people considering going back to school to “go for it” because it is never too late.

“Your job needs to be so much more than about money or you’ve been doing something for 20 years and you’re stuck in a rut. You have to be happy. There’s something to be said for being fulfilled.”

Schumer speaker

In his remarks to the graduates, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., echoed Czajkowski’s advice and urged graduates to pursue their dreams. Sometimes, he said the decisions people make in life don’t always work out, recalling a time when he passed up an opportunity to travel the world on a full scholarship to stay home with a girlfriend. The woman later dumped him.

One decision that did work out was entering politics. After graduating law school, he had a $400-a-week job lined up at a prestigious law firm. However, he told his parents he wasn’t accepting the position.

“I told them my love was politics,” he said.

He ran for the New York State Assembly against a party machine candidate and a neighborhood activist and won the election.

“Despite these tough times — and they are tough — this is the time to figure out what your dream is and then reach deep down inside yourself, see what you’re made of and see if you can achieve that,” he said.

Award-winning climate change journalist and author Elizabeth Kolbert told the graduates that the decisions people make — what kind of house to have and what kind of car to buy — have a planet-wide impact. Kolbert is best known for a series on the environment she wrote at The New Yorker that served as the basis for her book “Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature and Climate Change.”

She said it is not a given that Earth is going to look the same decades from now.

“Twenty thousand years ago, Albany was buried under ice — an ice sheet a mile thick,” she said.

Student speaker Christopher Onuorah of Long Island urged the graduates to invest in themselves as well as others. He said he appreciated the time he spent mentoring high school students. “It is now our turn to give back,” he said.

1,000 degrees

More than 1,000 students received degrees including 577 bachelor’s degrees, 370 master’s degrees and 93 doctoral degrees. President George M. Philip said the students are fortunate to live in an age of technology when everyone is so connected. “It is now time to put your newfound skills and training to work,” he said.

April Volk of Voorheesville said she was looking forward to a little free time now that she has her master’s in business administration. She worked full time at Key Bank while going to classes to stay current in her field and enhance her leadership ability. “I think that UAlbany is good about broadening your horizons. I think I’m a better problem solver.”

Amanda Kaczmarek of Schenectady, who also received an MBA, said she was also looking to take a break. She had previously worked in the fashion field and is now working for Trustco Bank. “I bought a house, got married and went back to school — all within a year.”