Joining St. Lawrence University in July 2013 after working for six years as Chief of Staff to the President at SUNY Canton and one year as Government Relations and Communications Coordinator at SUNY Potsdam, Ryan brings with him higher education experience in media relations as well as in government relations, international programs, and extended education. Prior to working in higher education, Ryan spent six years as a newspaper reporter and editor at the Press & Sun-Bulletin in Binghamton, N.Y.

Ryan graduated in 2000 from Kent State University in Ohio with a master's degree in history, and he earned his bachelor's degree from Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina with a double major in history and sociology and a minor in French. He is currently pursuing his doctorate in International and Cultural Studies in Education at McGill University in Montreal, Canada.