uni'alumni 2012_ENG

Nelli follows closely with her blue eyes as mama works at the desk. “The little one dictates the pace,” says her mother Dr. Katharina Herrmann. The art historian is receiving financial support in the form of a STAY Scholarship – and is thus in the position to continue her aca- demic career while raising a family. The University of Freiburg, the New University Endowment, and Alumni Frieburg e.V. offer STAY scholarships to outstanding female researchers from all disciplines. The so-called bridge schol- arships may be awarded for a period of up to twelve months. The goal is to give female postdoctoral researchers extra time to write a proposal for their habilita- tion thesis and apply for long-term fund- ing. The University Profits, Too Katherine Herrmann knows how much time it takes to put together a pro- posal for a habilitation project. “The more convincingly you can describe each individual step of your project, the better chances you’ll have securing funding,” says the 36-year-old scholar- ship recipient. She finds it important to enable women to continue their aca- demic career after completing their doctorate – for the researchers them- selves as well as for the university, which would otherwise lose academic resources. “I view it as a sign of appre- ciation for the quality of my research if the university doesn’t want to lose me.” Christina Nickweiler » www.gleichstellung.uni-freiburg. de/news/Stipendien Selling Tickets in a Duck Costume ALUMNI PRIZE: JAN DRAHEIM Yellow ducks, big success: Jan Dra- heim, research assistant at the Labora- tory for Microactuators, helped organize the first duck race on the Dreisam River. The proceeds were donated to the Clinic Clowns at the Freiburg University Medi- cal Center. Draheim was awarded the Alumni Prize of the Faculty of Engineer- ing for his efforts. Nicolas Scherger spoke with him. Mr. Draheim, why did you decide to hold a duck race of all things? Jan Draheim: I am a member of the Round Table Freiburg, an organization of young men who help the needy. Round Table organizes duck races in a lot of cities. So we thought: why not here? How did you prepare for the race? We dressed up in duck costumes and took part in Freiburg’s Carnival Parade to advertise the race. We dressed up in the same costumes on weekends and sold lottery tickets in the pedestrian zone, one for each duck. We found sponsors to donate prizes for the 200 fastest ducks. Finally, we tested the course and stuck lottery numbers to the bottom of 7,000 rubber ducks by hand. Was it worth all the effort? The public reaction was very positive. The weather cooperated, the audience was in a good mood, and we sold 2,000 more lottery tickets than we had expected. We succeeded in raising 12,500 euros for the Clinic Clowns. We’re planning on holding the race again in 2012. How did you manage to win the Alumni Prize? I sold a lot of lottery tickets to acquain- tances, for instance to my boss Prof. Dr. Ulrike Wallrabe at the Faculty of Engi- neering. She nominated me for the prize. » www.entenrennen.rt25.de Alumni Prizes The booster association Alumni Frei­ burg awards prizes at the faculties for outstanding student achievements. The prize may honor outstanding final theses or charitable work. Each faculty ­receives 1,500 euros for its alumni ­prizes. Yellow tide: 7,000 plastic ducks participated in Freiburg’s first duck race on the Dreisam. Photo: Pauly STAY SCHOLARSHIP: Katharina Herrmann Child or career? As the recipient of a STAY Scholarship, Katharina Herrmann has the best of both worlds. Photo: Nickweiler Have a Child, Stay in Academia Alumni Prize for a rubber duck race: Jan Draheim was recognized for his charitable work. 14 Alumni Network uni'alumni 2012