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When Richard J. Kurtz (B.S. in Education ’62) thinks
of his years at the University of Miami, he remembers
“a wonderful experience, both educationally and
personally.” To this day, Kurtz cherishes his connection
to the University of Miami. He has strongly supported
his alma mater for decades, and he has been since
1994 a member of the President’s Council, an advisory
group that includes some of the University’s most
prominent alumni.
Recently, Kurtz has taken his generosity to a
new level with a series of gifts totaling more
than $250,000 for the School of Education’s Building
Fund, bringing the School closer to fulfilling
its dream of a new facility that will reflect
and foster the excellence of its students, faculty
and programs. Having long outgrown shared space
in the Merrick Building, the School of Education
is ready to flourish in a state-of-the-art building
of its own.
Kurtz has watched the growth of the School of
Education and the University with a special sense
of pride. His UM connection is, after all, a family
affair; two of his children, Jeff (B.A.’91), a
Sociology major and a member of the 1987 National
Football Championship team, and Pamela (B.S.’93),
a Communications major, have strengthened the
Kurtz family’s ties to the University.
Kurtz cites his family as the most important
element of his life, and when it was time to name
his company, he came up with Kamson Corporation,
which is derived from his children’s names---Kimberly,
Pam and son Jeff. Since 1977, Kurtz has been President
and CEO of Kamson, a real estate management and
investment firm that includes dozens of middle-income
apartment complexes throughout the Northeast.
Kurtz, a legend in the real estate business, is
admired in particular for his long history of
providing families with good, affordable housing.
A resident of Bergen County, N.J. since 1969,
Kurtz is also known for community involvement,
especially his deep, ongoing commitment of time
and resources to Englewood Hospital and Medical
Center, where he serves on the hospital’s board
and as chair of its foundation. He is characteristically
unassuming about what he does for others. When
asked about his habit of giving back, Kurtz simply
says, “I have been very, very fortunate.”
Always a proponent of the School of Education,
Kurtz is especially excited about the leadership
of new dean Isaac Prilleltensky, who joined the
University in the fall of 2006. Dean Prilleltensky,
formerly professor of human and organizational
development and director of the Ph.D. program
in community research and action at the prestigious
Peabody College at Vanderbilt University, comes
to the School of Education with a wealth of experience
and ideas. “I’m extremely impressed with Isaac
Prilleltensky,” says Kurtz, “He is a wonderful
choice and I’m so inspired by his passion and
his brightness.”
Dean Prilleltensky, for his part, speaks warmly
of the way that Kurtz “combines compassion in
the social world with brilliance in the business
world” and he expresses deep appreciation of Kurtz’s
partnership and what it means to the School of
Education: “Mr. Kurtz is poised to make a lasting
and meaningful contribution to the School of Education
at the University of Miami, enabling us to move
forward with an ambitious agenda to train the
next generation of leaders and agents of change
in the community. Mr. Kurtz is already making
a difference in our educational mission. His passion
for excellence is energizing and invigorating.”
Dean Prilleltensky is delighted to welcome Kurtz
as a new member of the School of Education’s visiting
committee.
Kurtz is happy to be making a major investment
in the School of Education because, in his own
words, “Education is the cornerstone of our future.”
Surely alumni like Richard Kurtz are the cornerstone
of the University of Miami.
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