Bionics Institute CEO Robert Klupacs is proud of his family’s history.
He and his siblings Allyson, Andrew and Christopher wanted to find a way to honour the memory of their parents Magdalena (passed away 2010) and Janos (passed away 1979), who arrived in Australia from Holland and Hungary in 1955 and 1950 respectively, to start a new life in Australia.
In 2023, he and his siblings approached the Bionics Institute with the idea of creating the “Magdalena and Janos Klupacs Memorial PhD Scholarship” to support a student who, like them, is the child of first-generation migrants to Australia.
Robert says, “Like so many post war immigrants to Australia, life was very difficult for my parents in the early days in Australia. But they worked hard to give their seven children the best start in life. We all received the best possible education and have gone on to lead rewarding lives. We know that for many children of first-generation immigrants, education is cherished but financial support is often limited”.
We wanted to give a promising student some of the advantages given to us by our parents, Magdalena and Janos. Robert Klupacs
Robert and his siblings, Allyson, Christopher and Andrew have each jointly committed to give a combined $20,000 a year over four years to provide top-up funding for Ella Trang, who is undertaking a PhD at the Bionics Institute in 3D histological imaging.
I am very grateful for the support of the Klupacs Family, not only for the financial support, but also for the moral support for my studies. It’s very special to receive a scholarship in memory of their parents. Ella Trang
