May 13, 2008

As soon as he enrolled at Fresno State for graduate work in 2005, Scott Kupferman started looking for ways to help in the community. At the Fresno Center for Independent Living, he expanded the assistive technology and wrote a grant that will pay for further expansion. During his final fieldwork, he offered to work fewer hours so that a single parent would not have to lose the sole source of employment.

That dedication to helping others has culminated in Kupferman’s being awarded a master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling and being honored as the top master's degree student at California State University, Fresno.

Kupferman was named the Class of 2007 University Graduate Medal winner during the Graduate Degree Hooding Ceremony for master’s and doctoral candidates in the Save Mart Center today (May 18).

Kupferman, representing the Kremen School of Education and Human Development, was presented the silver University Graduate Medal by Fresno State President Dr. John D. Welty. He also received a plaque presented by Dr. Jeronima Echeverria, provost and vice president academic affairs.

The University Graduate Medal is the top honor given to a graduate student, selected from among nine graduate Dean’s Medalists chosen as the outstanding students in each of the university’s eight schools and colleges of academic discipline and the Division of Student Affairs. The dean of each selects a graduate medalist based on academic excellence, service to the school, community involvement and other notable achievements.

As the University Graduate Medal winner, Kupferman is among more than 750 students eligible to receive master’s or doctoral degree hoods at the event attended by more than 5,000 people. On Saturday morning, the post-baccalaureate students will have their degrees formally conferred at the 96th Commencement in Save Mart Center.

Kupferman completed his Master of Science in Rehabilitative Counseling with a 4.0 GPA. In September 2006, he won national acclaim when he was selected to receive the Rehabilitation Services Administration Commissioner’s Award for Excellence by the U.S. Department of Education.

Fluent in American Sign Language, Kupferman has established the Global Assistive Technology Initiative, a nonprofit organization that focuses on technology for people with disabilities.

His research in collaborative computing and assistive technology has been described as groundbreaking: Kupferman has developed software for an assistive computer-input device with patent pending.

He was also co-developer of a business plan awarded second place in Fresno State’s Lyles Center Business Plan Competition. His plan was for a training center that would employ disabled individuals.

Besides his many other activities, Kupferman was a mentor to underprivileged children and teens, a Big Brother to a child with disabilities and a research mentor to some of the students in the Rehabilitation Counseling program.

He plans to earn a doctorate and become a college professor.

Three other top students were honored at the Graduate Degree Hooding Ceremony.

Tatjana Sikuljak, who earned a Master of Science degree in plant science, received the Outstanding Thesis Award.

Sikuljak developed a technique for extracting DNA from insects she captured in an effort to identify the bacterium that causes Almond Leaf Scorch Disease, a debilitating condition that can be fatal to almond trees. The research is of great significance because the same bacterium is the cause of Pierce’s Disease in grapes, which poses a serious economic threat to growers in California.

Travis Koll, who is graduating with a Master of Arts degree in English with Literature option, was awarded an honorable mention for his thesis, “Restoring Hardy’s Fate.”

Simon Haeder received the Phyllis Watts Eudy Memorial Award for the outstanding international graduate student. Haeder, who is from Germany, is graduating with a Master of Arts in International Relations and a perfect 4.0 cumulative GPA.

He worked last summer in the office of U.S. Rep. Dennis Cardoza in Washington, D.C. While pursing his master’s degree, Haeder served on eight advisory committees, was President of the Residence Hall Association and was senator for the College of Social Science in student government. He plans to continue his studies toward a Ph.D. at the University of Oklahoma.

All Dean’s Medalists, both graduate and undergraduate, will be recognized at Saturday’s University Commencement, which begins at 10 a.m. in the Save Mart Center.