by Quinn Padovani

George Mason men's volleyball alum Dr. Janis Tupesis ('95) was recently the recipient of the prestigious Alumni Service Award, an honor he received at the Celebration of Distinction Ceremony on September 18 at the Hilton McLean Tyson's Corner. Tupesis earned the award not only for his ongoing service to George Mason, but also for his continuous work and assistance within the fields of health, medicine, and education.

Tupesis is currently a faculty member in the BerbeeWalsh Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health and vice president of the International Federation for Emergency Medicine. He has been recognized for his global work on emergency health care and education and received the 2018 Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award from the Global Emergency Medicine Academy.

Among his many roles, Tupesis serves as a volunteer technical consultant at the World Health Organization and has also contributed to a variety of educational initiatives abroad. One of the recent educational initiatives that Tupesis has been a part of is called the Africa Centers of Excellence (ACE) Impact Project, a groundbreaking service-based project that has helped to vastly improve the educational foundation in Western Africa.

The ACE Impact Project has been the leader in the development of Western Africa's higher-level education landscape. The initiative aims to support higher level learning institutions through the development of "ACE Centers" that specialize in various subjects such as science, mathematics, and the social sciences.

The project began back in 2014 and consisted of 22 "Centers of Excellence" spanning nine different West African countries. Tupesis has worked with the ACE project since 2018 as a consultant/representative for several ACE centers around Western Africa and has seen the project grow and produce substantial results.

When asked about a specific example that illuminated the impact that ACE has had on developing the post-graduate educational foundation in Africa, Tupesis explained there were, "innumerable examples." Tupesis explained that ACE has produced "over twenty-five thousand students, three thousand PhD students, over ten thousand master's students, and has also gone on to generate over 80 million dollars in externally generated revenue." As of today, the project has helped to greatly spur the region of Western Africa towards future prosperity not only educationally, but economically and infrastructurally as well.

Tupesis' service has undoubtedly made a global impact. According to Tupesis, both his service and professional careers were heavily shaped by his experiences at George Mason and specifically during his time as an outside hitter on the men's volleyball team. When asked how his tenure on the volleyball team contributed to his overall success in his post-graduation endeavors, Tupesis said that being on the volleyball team "gave me the ability to learn teamwork, leadership, and time management." Further, Tupesis added that the team taught him the ability to work with others that were from different backgrounds, a cornerstone when it comes to his work within the ACE Project as well as other ventures.

During his acceptance speech for the alumni service award, Tupesis once again spoke to the impact that his time on the volleyball team had on him, and shouted out several of his coaches from his time on the team among others. Tupesis stated, "Mason Athletics doesn't just compete; it builds character, fosters inclusivity, and strengthens the bonds among alumni, students, and the region. I 100% would not be here without the guidance and mentorship from individuals such as coaches as Ron Shakya, Uvaldo Acosta, Jay Hossack, and administrators such as Marvin Lewis and Katie Pate. You took a chance on a kid from a small town from outside of Madison, Wisconsin and I will forever be grateful."

Since graduating from George Mason back in 1995, Dr. Janis Tupesis has had a meaningful impact in a wide-variety of sectors. From health, to medicine, to education, Tupesis' service has had a profoundly transformative effect on individuals and communities around the world.