Teen whiz from Ukraine bags diploma, degree

Published online on Wednesday, May. 20, 2009

Vitaliy Kuchkovskiy was just a 10-year-old boy when his family moved from Ukraine to Fresno.

He spoke two languages, but neither was English. In school, Vitaliy was excused from fifth-grade spelling and reading -- but the next year he was expected to keep up.

Now, at 17, Vitaliy has raced past his peers. He has earned a high school diploma -- the first graduate of Design Science High School in Fresno -- and an associate's degree in general studies from Fresno City College.

Friday, Vitaliy -- one of about 1,500 graduates -- will participate in college commencement at 7:30 p.m. in Selland Arena. He already has collected one of seven dean's medallions, which are mainly given to students who are role models and who excel both academically and in community service.

Rick Christl, dean of the applied technology division, said Vitaliy "is one of those kids who sparkles and goes to your heart right away." He selected Vitaliy for the honor.

Vitaliy is modest about his success, and he freely credits God. His next academic step is an engineering program at Fresno State, but he also wants to attend a Christian seminary.

Today, Vitaliy speaks fluent and lightly accented English, in addition to Russian and Ukrainian. His English vocabulary is much deeper than when he arrived in the U.S. in 2002.

"I knew how to count from one to 10 and say 'my name is Vitaliy,' " he said.

The Kuchkovskiy family left Kiev because it was tough to find work, Vitaliy said. Several relatives already lived in Fresno, he said, and the family came to the U.S. as legal residents.

Still, young Vitaliy had doubts about the move, which came only a few months after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

He remembered watching the Twin Towers fall and thinking: "Is this the right thing to do?"

In Fresno, Vitaliy wondered at the empty sidewalks -- and how he seemed to see people only in their cars. In Kiev, he said, the sidewalks were busy and public transportation was popular.

But he adjusted, mastering English with the help of "PBS Kids" and simply because he had to learn it. He often was called upon to help his parents navigate everyday life.

Vitaliy's father, Aleksandr Kuchkovskiy, an evangelical Baptist pastor, was diagnosed with cancer in 2003. Vitaliy's mother, Lyubov Kuchkovskaya, became the primary breadwinner and mainly worked in child care at churches. Her youngest son found a minimum-wage job related to after-school activities at Fort Miller Middle School.

It was there, as a student, that Vitaliy was introduced to Design Science High School. The program -- a joint venture of Fresno Unified, Fresno City College, the Foundation for California Community Colleges and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation -- offered the chance to earn both a high school diploma and college degree in five years.

Intrigued, Vitaliy applied and became part of the school's first class in 2005. Principal Roy Exum described Vitaliy as "extremely driven" in pushing through the accelerated college and high school program, where about 170 students focus on construction management, engineering and architecture.

Students take classes at the high school, which is on Fresno Unified property east of the main City College complex, and also on the campus. But Vitaliy said he thought about leaving the first year; he sometimes felt "like a guinea pig." The school had just opened and didn't always operate as expected.

Teacher Tressa Overstreet, who helps shepherd students through the program, was among those who encouraged him to stay. Think of the free tuition and books, she said, and the chance to earn a college degree and high school diploma simultaneously. Vitaliy did stay -- finishing the five-year program in four years with a 3.9 grade-point average. Overstreet said she has watched him mature into a young man who exudes "a quiet self-confidence."

Vitaliy, who has been on several missionary trips, said he will take a break from academics this summer and concentrate instead on church and Bible study.

"Anything," he said, "that doesn't involve homework."