By Ceoli Jacoby
Zach McKay, 25, and Hari Kannan, 19, have already accomplished plenty in their young lives. Zach is a decorated Special Olympian representing Team Maryland, a longtime employee at Jim Coleman Honda and was voted “Most Likely to Make you Smile” by his graduating class at Marriotts Ridge High School. Hari serves as a board member of the Down Syndrome Network of Montgomery County and as an ambassador for Best Buddies Maryland. This fall, the men will embark on a new, shared venture: becoming Terps.
Together, Zach and Hari make up the first cohort of incoming freshmen in UMD’s TerpsEXCEED pilot program — a two-year, fully inclusive higher education experience for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Participants will have the opportunity to live and work on campus, join student organizations and earn a two-year certificate under the Office of Extended Studies.
Program Director Amy D’Agati said the idea has been “brewing in [her] head for about a decade.” She was inspired in part by her brother who, years ago, completed a similar course of study at a Southern California institution.
“He will tell you to this day that he went to Mt. San Antonio College, he had a job on campus, he audited courses and he graduated. And I was always really impressed with that,” D’Agati said.
In Maryland, however, D’Agati noticed that the postsecondary options for students like her brother were limited. Several community colleges do collaborate with their corresponding public school systems to provide continued learning for students who receive special education services between the ages of 18 and 21 — Hari attended a Transition Off-Site program at Montgomery College and Zach attended the Community Connection program at Howard Community College. However, Marylanders with IDD who yearned for the quintessential college experience would be forced to go elsewhere.
“A couple of big schools in other states have programs that we looked at,” Zach’s mother, Kimberly McKay, said. “George Mason has one, Clemson has one, but we’re Terps! We wanted our flagship university to step forward and do it.”
Hari also considered attending the Mason LIFE program in Virginia. Once the opportunity arose, though, he decided that staying in-state would be a better fit.
“A couple of the friends I’ve known since my high school years went to UMD, and they told me it was, like, an amazing college,” he said. “They encouraged me to come there, so when my mom found [the program], I was excited.”
According to D’Agati, the TerpsEXCEED program received widespread support from faculty. Funding, on the other hand, was hard to come by. The Department of Education allocates a limited amount of grant money every five years to Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities, but the competition is fierce. UMD’s application has been denied at all three iterations: first in 2010, again in 2015 and most recently in 2020.
Eventually, the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council awarded $100,000 toward the launch of the program and several donors stepped in. Alison Clarvit, a member of the board of the College of Education, pledged a total of $100,000 over a span of five years. The Paul and Ellen Gaske Foundation pledged an additional $200,000 during the same period. The program also received roughly $1,000 on Giving Day this year.
D’Agati, though relieved that the program is fully funded for the next few cohorts, hopes to reduce costs for lower-income families in the near future. Currently, students in the program can expect to pay a $3,750 fee each semester on top of the usual tuition and housing expenses.
“The goal is ultimately to develop some scholarship funds, and we can apply through Federal Student Aid to become something called a Comprehensive Transition Program (CTP) … so that [our] students can apply for Pell Grants and Work-Study and loans,” D’Agati said.
Without the CTP designation, the TerpsEXCEED program remains inaccessible to many families, particularly those that did not factor a college education for their children with IDD into their long-term financial plans.
“I’m really happy for him that he has a chance to do this,” Zach’s father, Wendell McKay, said. “Because there’s only two people in the program right now, you can see clearly that most people with his circumstances don’t have a chance to do this.”
The duo will be supported by the university’s Accessibility and Disability Service, a network of peer mentors, and individual companions offered through Medicaid Waiver Services.
This semester, Zach will be studying Oral Communications and the History of Popular Music. Hari will be studying Oral Communications and Introduction to Criminology. Both will also be enrolled in Career Preparation 101 and an internship to be determined.
Outside of class, Zach is looking forward to joining a music ensemble and spending time at the Stamp Student Union. He also has an affinity for RJ Bentley’s, having spent time there during visits to see his older sister, Alex McKay.
Hari is “excited about making friends and trying different cultures.” He is especially interested in UMD’s chapter of Best Buddies and intramural sports. Both Hari and Zach plan to be fixtures of the student section at football and basketball games.
In the midst of all the enthusiasm, Hari, Zach and their families are dealing with the typical concerns of incoming freshmen — navigating a large campus, living independently and meeting new people. Nonetheless, they are confident that Hari and Zach will make the most of the program.
“I think this program allows people to make friends, be more social and have the feeling that college is working for them,” Hari said. “I feel honored, because UMD is the best step for me.”
D’Agati noted that disability is often left out of the conversation when it comes to diversity and inclusion on campus. She believes that the first TerpsEXCEED cohort will help show the UMD community what students with IDD can bring to the table.
“Maryland is considered to be a progressive state, and not having a program like this for students with disabilities was a huge gap,” Hari’s mother, Vidya Kannan, said. “I’m really hoping that the lessons they learn from the pilot year will be helpful continuing on.”
“Man, I’m just ready to get out there,” Zach said.
Featured photo: Zach McKay and Hari Kannan at their new student orientation. Photo courtesy of Amy D’Agati.
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