Alumni Profiles

The associations and local chapters of former scholarship recipients in their home countries serve to strengthen the Church’s presence in their respective societies. Through these groups, KAAD’s educational work continues, as does academic exchange. They can also serve as a foundation for joint (socially oriented) projects. For KAAD itself, they provide invaluable assistance in advising and preparing scholarship applicants and in facilitating the reintegration of returning scholarship recipients into their home countries.

The KAAD Network Worldwide

About the Network

Alumni Brochure

Argentina

Marcos Matarazzi

Marcos Nahuel Matarazzi is a social worker. Working closely with the Caritas organization in his diocese in southern Buenos Aires, he supports local initiatives and social projects in particularly vulnerable neighborhoods.

Ghana

Vincent Kyere

Vincent Kyere studies the environmental and health impacts of informal e-waste recycling in Ghana. Today, he leads a recycling project in Agbogbloshie and is active in the Ghanaian KAAD network.

Vietnam

Nguyen Thi Thu Thao

Even as a child, French classes at school sparked Nguyen Thi Thu Thao's fascination with other languages and cultures and her desire to contribute to international cultural understanding.

Uganda

Diana Kwarikunda

Diana Kwarikunda’s professional journey has been shaped by questions that arose from her experience in the classroom: Working with students under challenging conditions led her to focus on fundamental questions about learning.

Colombia

Henry Murillo

Even during his first years of college, Henry Murillo discovered that criminal law was his calling. Since Colombian criminal law is heavily influenced by German legal doctrine, he wanted to pursue this graduate program in Germany.

Egypt

Mary Kamel

Mary Kamel’s commitment is driven by her desire to provide people in difficult life situations with knowledge about prevention and preventive health care and to empower them to take charge of their own health.

Kenya

Constansia Mumma

Dr. Constansia Mumma-Martinon, a peace and conflict researcher from Kenya, is a lecturer at the University of Nairobi and is actively involved in reconciliation efforts in her home country.

Armenia

Aram Simonyan

Aram Simonyan is an associate professor at the International Scientific Education Center of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia.

Guatemala

M. Lemus / L. González

Psychologist Melissa A. Lemus García and communication scholar Leonor L. González Quiñónez helped design the master's program in "Social Pedagogy" at Rafael Landívar University.

Gaza / Palestinian Territories

Abed Schokry

While studying biomedical engineering at the Technical University of Berlin, Prof. Dr. Abed Schokry stood out in the Catholic Student Community for his strong commitment to Christian-Islamic dialogue and his social activism.

Ethiopia

Mekdem Tesfamichael

Psychologist Dr. Mekdem Tesfamichael Hassen is helping to establish a counseling center in Addis Ababa designed to provide support to people dealing with trauma, substance use, and other everyday stressors. She is also a member of our partner committee in Ethiopia.

Bolivia

Franz Peter Freudenthal

Dr. Franz Peter Freudenthal specialized in pediatric cardiology at RWTH Aachen University with the support of a KAAD fellowship. There, he achieved a breakthrough in medical technology that has saved the lives of more than 50,000 children to date.

Argentina

Ana María Bonet

Dr. Ana María Bonet, a lawyer, is a key figure in our Latin American network who is committed to making knowledge accessible. She also plays a major role in establishing various alumni groups.

Ethiopia

Elias Lewi Teklemariam

After earning his doctorate at the Technical University of Darmstadt, geophysicist Dr.-Ing. Elias Lewi Teklemariam had excellent prospects for a career in Europe or North America. Nevertheless, he returned to Ethiopia in 2005.

Philippines

Trinnah Marie Caracho

Social scientist Trinnah Marie Caracho has focused her academic work on the fields of communication, public policy, and development, and serves as the coordinator of volunteer programs at Habitat for Humanity International.

Israel

Maysoon Kheir

Peace and conflict researcher Maysoon Kheir is the national coordinator of a project in Jerusalem dedicated to the most vulnerable of the vulnerable: people with disabilities.

Vietnam

Diep Anh Tran

Dr. Diep Anh Tran is developing technical solutions to provide people in northern Vietnam and similar regions with decentralized access to drinking water.

Armenia

Narine Ghazaryan

Biophysicist Dr. Narine Ghazaryan is the deputy director of the Hematology Center named after Prof. R. Yeolan and is one of Armenia’s leading cancer researchers.

Syria

Rimon Wehbi

Rimon Wehbi

Rimon Wehbi is from Maalula, a Christian village in Syria and one of the last places in the world where Western Aramaic is still spoken—the “lingua franca” of the Middle East, in which Jesus also preached.

Guatemala

Jeniffer Elena Montes Murcia

Jeniffer Elena Montes Murcia

After earning her master's degree in "Monumental Heritage," Jeniffer Elena Montes Murcia now works for the Guatemalan government's Ministry of Culture and heads the World Heritage Department.

Vietnam

Thái Huỳnh Anh Chi

Dr. Thái Huỳnh Anh Chi is a social scientist and human geographer and works as a lecturer and instructor in the social sciences at the Open University in Ho Chi Minh City.

Kenya

Eddy Okoth Odari

In his research, virologist Dr. Eddy Okoth Odari focused primarily on developing simple HIV testing methods—a project of great importance for use in Africa.

India

Babu Thaliath

Babu Thaliath

Prof. Dr. Babu Thaliath, a scholar of German literature and philosophy, focuses his research on epistemology and aesthetics. He teaches at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.

Armenia

Eduard Saroyan

Eduard Saroyan

Eduard Saroyan plays a key role in shaping the work of our partner organization in Armenia and was awarded the KAAD “Bene Merenti” Medal in 2018 for his ongoing commitment.

Lebanon

Souad Slim

Prof. Dr. Souad Slim

Prof. Dr. Souad Slim has been a dedicated member of the Lebanese KAAD partner committee for more than twenty years. Through both her professional work and her involvement with KAAD, she helps give the younger generation in the Middle East a future and counteract the brain drain.

Brazil

Fabiana Faleiros

Dr. Fabiana Faleiros

Since returning to Brazil, Dr. Fabiana Faleiros, a nursing and rehabilitation scientist, has built an impressive career. She is now a professor at the prestigious School of Nursing at the University of São Paulo in Ribeirão Preto.

Kenya

Selasi Awusi Sosu

Selasi Awusi Sosu

Selasi Awusi Sosu, from the renowned Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana, has made a name for herself primarily as a freelance artist. At the 58th Biennale, themed “May you live in interesting times,” she was able to exhibit her critical works.

Zimbabwe

Georgina Maxim

Georgina Maxim, together with her husband, KAAD alumnus Misheck Masamvu, founded the Village Unhu Center, a collective dedicated to supporting emerging artists that has had a vibrant and lasting impact on Zimbabwe’s art scene in recent years.

Czech Republic

Pavel Blažek

Pavel Blažek works as a research associate at the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences. He is our primary point of contact in the Czech Republic and was awarded the KAAD “Bene merenti” Medal in 2018 for his work.

Egypt

Michael Ghattas

Michael Ghattas

The renowned Egyptian theologian and musicologist has always been passionate about theology and church music. He was born 65 years ago in Iskanderiyya, in Alexandria—a metropolis steeped in history and known for its philosophers and theologians.

Indonesia

Juliana Murniati

Juliana Murniati

An alumna has become a partner. From 2003 to 2007, with support from the KAAD, she completed her doctoral dissertation at the Universities of Jena and Regensburg on the topic “A Cross-Cultural Study of Trust-Building: The Case of German and Indonesian Work Groups.”

Mexico

Juan José Tagle Briseño

Juan José Tagle

From 2012 to 2014, Juan José Tagle studied in the “Stage Design—Theatrical Space” master’s program at the Technical University of Berlin with the support of a combined scholarship from the government funding organization FONCA-CONACYT and KAAD.

Myanmar

Zaw Zen Let

Zaw Zen Let

Zaw Zen Let, born on June 23, 1992, in Mogaung Township, Kachin State, Myanmar, received a scholarship through the Bettina Kattermann Foundation’s scholarship program—administered by KAAD—to pursue a master’s degree in public health at Mahidol University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Uganda

Proscovia Namubiru Ssentamu

Proscovia Namubiru Ssentamu

Proscovia Namubiru Ssentamu is one of many African KAAD scholarship recipients who have discovered the University of Bayreuth as an outstanding academic institution. The university’s long-standing tradition of engagement with Africa provides excellent conditions for research on African topics, particularly in the social sciences.

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