Kupperman to receive Distinguished Alumni Award from College of Engineering

3/9/2017

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Melvin (Mickey) Kupperman (BS 57, MS 58), Chief Operations Officer for the real estate development, investment and management firm Silverstein Properties Inc., has won the Alumni Award for Distinguished Service from the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This prestigious award will be presented to Kupperman at the Student and Alumni Awards Ceremony in Champaign, Ill., on April 1, 2017, along with seven additional Illinois alumni.

The College of Engineering’s Distinguished Alumni Awards are presented to a select group of alumni each year. Recipients are selected for the award based on their outstanding leadership, creativity, entrepreneurship and contributions to the field of engineering. These honorees have provided service to society, the professional community, and to their respective departments, the College and the University. Kupperman is being recognized for his "remarkable leadership, strategic organizational skills, and management of mega-projects, including design and development.”

Kupperman — a previous winner of the CEEAA Distinguished Alumnus Award (1989) — earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from CEE at Illinois in 1957 and 1958, respectively. After graduation, he started as a summer intern with international architectural, engineering and construction firm A. Epstein and Sons, where he stayed for 47 years, eventually serving as CEO. Throughout his career, Kupperman’s primary focus was on vast and complex projects. Kupperman had a particular focus on organizational strategy and development as well as the management and organization of mega-projects, such as the expansions of McCormick Place in Chicago and the United Airlines Terminal at O'Hare International Airport and the redevelopment of Midway Airport. Upon retiring from A. Epstein and Sons in 2005, he joined Silverstein Properties, Inc. where he serves as Vice Chairman. 

Kupperman is affiliated with several community organizations. He previously served as the President of the Drexel Home, which is a charity providing care for the elderly. As a member for the Engineering at Illinois Board of Visitors, he helped guide the vision for the future of the College. His past appointments also include the directorship of the Chicago Youth Centers, membership of the Glencoe Zoning Board, the Glencoe Village Caucus, and the United Way Facilities Management Committee. He was also a committee member of the National Research Council and Vice Chairman and Trustee of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. He and his wife reside in New York City and Deerfield, Ill. 


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This story was published March 9, 2017.