Pivoting toward the future

Scott Kurtz earns computer science degree after major life change

By California State University, Bakersfield

May 18^th, 2023

A lot has changed for Scott Kurtz since he earned his first bachelor’s degree in physical therapy from the University of North Dakota in 1997. As a returning student now majoring in computer science, the college experience has been a bit different for Kurtz this go around, but one thing stayed the same.

“I remember being very excited to be done with school the first time around, and I’m equally as excited to be done this time!” he said. “I’m excited to get back out there and do the job search.”

Kurtz, 49, will graduate from California State University, Bakersfield with his bachelor’s degree in computer science, the culmination of years of hard work and determination after the loss of his sight forced him to pivot from his previous career in physical therapy.

As a freshman at UND, Kurtz was first interested in science and math and pursued an electrical engineering degree. He found during his sophomore year that he preferred working directly with people and decided to instead pursue physical therapy, later earning his master’s degree in the subject in 1998.

After finding work in physical therapy in Bakersfield, Kurtz moved here later that year and was joined by his then-girlfriend, Angie, in 1999. The two married a year later.

At 22, during his fourth year at UND, Kurtz was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, which explained the poor night vision he was experiencing. The disease’s degeneration varies among people, but for Kurtz it was seven years later that he lost enough of his vision that he had to stop driving. Eventually, he would lose his physical therapy job too.

“When I lost my job, I decided I wanted to go back to what I enjoyed before,” Kurtz said. “I like the logical component to computers. I’ve always liked computers, but the biggest thing is the computer being able to talk back to me and being able to use that as accommodation for other things. It’s nice to be on my own.”

Kurtz’s return to school started in 2015 at Bakersfield College before he transferred to CSUB in fall 2019. Though he joked that he’s felt old as a returning student, Kurtz said everyone on campus has been kind and helpful. He gets around campus with his guide dog, Ace, who has been popular in his classes.

“I don’t seem to remember things quite as easily as I used to!” Kurtz said with a laugh when comparing his two educational journeys. “But the interesting thing is this time around it seems like you don’t have to remember everything — you just have to Google it again. Everything is kind of different that way. Memorization is a lot less of a process and seems less important than it used to be.”

The university’s Services for Students with Disabilities and Drs. Melissa Danforth and Nick Toothman from the Department of Computer & Electrical Engineering and Computer Science were especially helpful to Kurtz throughout his education.

“Scott has to be one of the hardest-working and most determined students I've met,” Dr. Toothman said. “He has repeatedly demonstrated the aptitude, focus and patience necessary for tackling complex problems in computer science.”

Dr. Toothman explained that to excel in this kind of work, it’s necessary to form a “mental model” of the software — how it’s organized, the problems it’s trying to solve and efficient solutions to those problems. Doing this can be taxing for any programmer, he said, and he recalled Kurtz mentioning that it tends to be a slower process with accessibility technology. Yet he said Kurtz’s work showed “a consistent ability to build these mental models with impressive depth."

“In group projects, he is a valuable team member with excellent communication skills, and he produces high-quality work for backend and database development,” Dr. Toothman continued. “I'm confident he will have a very interesting and successful career ahead of him.”

In his personal life, Kurtz has also had the support of his wife and their two sons, both college students themselves. Twenty-year-old Landen is finishing his second year at the University of California Santa Barbara and 22-year-old Skyler is graduating this spring from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Angie Kurtz said she is incredibly proud of her husband.

“I watched as he struggled to navigate the challenges of going back to school after more than 20 years, this time without the advantage of sight,” she said. “He amazed me every step of the way. It’s been wonderful to witness his sense of accomplishment as he finished projects, passed exams and completed each course. His perseverance inspires me every day. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for him.”

Kurtz hopes to find local work in the database field, as he and his family have made Bakersfield their home. Since he and Angie moved here, his mother, stepfather and sister have too.

When he hasn’t been busy with classes and homework, Kurtz plays guitar and sings at the Bakersfield First Church of the Nazarene. Now that his time will free up after graduation, he hopes to also return to tandem bicycling. In 2019, he participated in the Solvang Century ride with friend and church guitarist Todd Bentley.

“Life is pretty good. I just had to adjust,” Kurtz said of living with vision loss. “There’s a lot of things that are accessible nowadays that weren’t before, so I’m thankful it happened in the 2000s rather than the 1950s.”

While Kurtz will miss commencement later this week for a friend’s wedding, his family will likely celebrate his accomplishments by going out to dinner. Later, they’ll attend Skyler’s graduation.

Kurtz recalled the advice he gave his sons as they entered college, and he offers it to any other student, whether traditional or returning.

“Just keep working and don’t get intimidated,” he said. “When you go to school, it can be intimidating because you think everyone is smarter than you or has the same skill set, but once you get out in real life, you realize everyone has their special skills. So don’t get intimated by your cohorts in school.”