Alena DeAntonellis (aldeantonellis@ursinus.edu)
Dr. Matthew Kozusko applied for a position at Ursinus in his final semester of graduate PhD work, intrigued by J.D. Salinger’s attendance here. He immediately fell in love with the campus when he set foot on it, withdrawing his applications to other positions and began teaching here in fall 2003 as a Shakespeare professor. Currently, he teaches CIE and a wide variety of Shakespeare classes such as “Gods, Rebels, and Frauds” and “Shakespeare Remakes.” “You can have so many conversations within the space of Shakespeare, including many contemporary issues,” he explained.
His favorite classes to teach are Intro to Shakespare and CIE. With Intro to Shakespeare, he gets to introduce “a little bit of everything” while touching upon many components of the plays he loves so much while he enjoys teaching CIE in particular because of the importance of the program, as “these topics in CIE are difficult to teach, but are so unbelievably important.” In general, Shakespeare classes allow him to talk about issues regarding social equality, a topic of great importance to students in modern times. He also expresses how much he has missed teaching Milton. He’s excited to be offering it again next semester, letting him revisit his love for Paradise Lost. He also appreciates the teaching flexibility that Ursinus gives him. They allow the faculty to adjust the details of their classes in ways that aren’t typical for colleges.
At some point in the future, Kozusko intends on teaching Shakespeare through a Performance class. He’s particularly excited about this since it would give Ursinus students the opportunity to learn and understand Shakespeare. By not only seeing it in action, but actualizing the play as they perform it based on their interpretations, students stand to gain a lot from this class that they wouldn’t get from simply reading it as a text. This will also be well-suited for individuals who enjoy Shakespeare and similar topics, and also have an interest in acting or in actively interpreting texts.
Outside of his classes at Ursinus, Dr. Kozusko enjoys surfing whenever he can. He spent a large portion of his life as a competitive swimmer, but when he wrecked his shoulder and could no longer compete, he discovered surfing. He compared it to yoga in the way it has revolutionized his life and his perspective on things. “It has truly changed my life,” he says. “It really alters the way you think of the world.”
Dr. Kozusko is also a proud parent. “Dad-ing is one of the most fun things I’ve ever done,” he exclaimed. He loves spending time with his family and having a child has become one of the greatest aspects of his life. Being a father is one of the most enjoyable parts of his day, especially since he has a very social household, living right across from a park in the city. He and his family love interacting with each other and with others, and this social home environment has created an ideal life for him.