Tag Archives: alumni

by | October 8, 2012 · 5:29 pm

Reminiscing With Michael Vaughan-Cherubin (PPI-ME ’09)

We recently caught up with former PPI-ME International Fellow and Operations Manager Michael Vaughan-Cherubin (’09), who currently manages United Soccer Club, a program that teaches soccer and life skills to inner-city and underprivileged youth in the greater D.C. area. He is also a Managing Partner at Global Game Changers, a consulting firm that helps sport-for-good organizations implement, improve, or evaluate their programming worldwide. Keep reading to hear more about Michael’s best memories of his time with PeacePlayers.

Mike leads a defensive drill at a PPI practice back in 2007

Can you tell us more about what you’ve been up to since PPI? Has your experience with PPI influenced your path? 

Coming on board with PeacePlayers is by far the most influential decision I ever made. I still live the legacy of my time with PPI. I’m still working to educate youth through sport. Following my fellowship, I took a job with DC United, the MLS soccer team in DC. I help with their foundation United For DC. I work on a program that does soccer and life skills training for at-risk youth. We primarily work to educate about nutrition. Later tonight, I’ll be on the way to New York City to meet with five of my best friends and business partners, all of whom I met during my time in the Middle East. They’re my best friends and colleagues- we’re meeting all weekend about our company. During my time with PPI, we started a consulting firm called Global Game Changers to help organizations that are using sport for good.

What are some of your best memories of your work in the Middle East?

I started something called the Jerusalem Peace League, which brought eight teams together from all over the city to play in a weekly league. It had fifty-fifty Arab/Jewish representation. Our PPI teams were well-mixed, but the other teams were not. I was one of the coaches. At playing time, I couldn’t find two of my players, one Arab player and one Jewish player. I went looking for them- I was getting kind of upset and nervous. I found them in a gymnastics room, where they were just getting in trouble together, playing in a place where they shouldn’t have been. But more to the point, they were ready to break off and have a little teenage fun, even across Arab and Jewish lines.

My grandmother passed away the summer before I left Israel, the summer of 2009. My cousin Ellen also worked for PPI at the time. My nana believed very strongly in working for peace in the Middle East, and my father thought that we should do something in Jerusalem to honor her memory. We raised about $8,000 to build a court at the Hand-in-Hand School for Bilingual Education in Jerusalem to give the kids some space to play.

What do you love about basketball?

Basketball is a great game for teaching life skills, especially conflict resolution. The intimacy of the five players on the court, and even the larger twelve-player team, creates a close-knit team atmosphere more than other sports. The physical close nature of the game forces players to learn each others’ strengths and weaknesses. Each player is involved all the time. On a macro-level, too, basketball provides an incredible opportunity to bring people together. As an American sport, it’s a neutral, solid base to build on. Soccer, curling, rugby- there’s a lot more baggage associated with those sports in some of the conflict areas where PPI works.

What were you hoping to get out of your experience with PPI? What were some of your personal goals, and how did you grow over the course of the program?

I got my Master’s in Conflict Resolution at American University, and I traveled abroad to study in the Middle East. The chance to work with PPI was literally the most perfect confluence of my professional and personal desires. I knew right from the get-go that it was right for me.

PPI was a great organization to work for- I feel truly blessed. We had incredible opportunities to grow the program and to grow ourselves. When I was hired as Operations Manager, I was one of two full-time staff. We all learned and grew together, and when I left in the winter of 2009, the program was fully functional without American staff.

In my role as Operations Manager, I was managing my fellow fellows. That was a big step for me. When I left PPI, I’d gained experience running programs, but also managing personnel and human resources. For someone who loves basketball and believes that there’s something we can teach youth through the sport, there’s just no better opportunity.

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by | September 24, 2012 · 5:36 am

Adam Hirsch (PPI-CY ’12) Takes On New Role as Development & Communications Associate

PPI’s new Development and Communication Associate and former International Fellow, Adam Hirsch, leading a girls Twinning in Cyprus in 2012

We are excited to announce that Adam Hirsch, former International Fellow for PPI-Cyprus, recently joined the staff at the Washington DC office as the newest Development and Communication Associate! Here in Washington, DC, Adam will work with Director of Development Amy Selco to research new funding opportunities, build relationships with donors, manage fundraising activities, write grants, and coordinate PPI’s public profile. Previously, Adam worked as the Game Operations Assistant Manager at the University of San Francisco, where he oversaw the operational details of all events at the University’s athletic facilities. Adam also has worked for the Golden State Warriors and the Oakland Raiders. In 2009, Adam received his Masters of Science in Sport Management from the University of San Francisco. Adam completed his undergraduate degree at the University of California at Santa Cruz in 2007, majoring in Business Management. Read our interview with Adam below to learn more!

Can you tell us more about your new position?

I am very excited to be part of PPI’s small but first-rate development team. In addition to doing development work at our DC office, I will be working closely with all of our international sites helping them identify local fundraising opportunities so that they can become more independent and sustainable. I feel that my past experience abroad will help me to better understand the unique challenges our overseas programs face. In addition, I will try to utilize my past experience with media and art to reinvigorate our communications. It is important that we effectively share our story so that people understand the great impact PPI has around the world.

What are some of your best memories of your work with PPI overseas?

There are so many great memories, but some of the best have to be the close personal relationships I built. PPI-CY worked with some of the kids over three years- we watched them grow up on and off the court. I had the privilege of working with some great coaches, and I gained valuable experience leading a non-profit through big challenges. There is really nothing like spending every day bringing smiles to the faces of young children who need it.

Since leaving Cyprus in May, I have stayed in contact with PPI-CY coaches and kids. I enjoyed seeing all the pictures from their summer camp online. I’m very happy with where the program is now, and where it’s heading. I’m happy that I was able to contribute to it.

What insights will you bring from your past experiences with PPI to your new role?

I am very excited to see my role as an International Fellow evolve. Being a former PPI Shapiro Fellow, I hope I can continue to positively affect the organization on a global level. I learned so much living in a culture different from our own. Seeing the world from another perspective was a life-changing experience.

What are you excited to explore in your new city?

I am very excited about living in Washington DC. There is so much going on here that I cannot wait to get involved in. I recently completed a program with the Atlantic Council entitled “Young Turkey/Young America“, which brought a group of 30 young professionals from Turkey and America together to foster transatlantic dialogue on foreign policy issues and strengthen America and Turkey’s relationship. I am excited to see how I can use my experiences in international politics to increase PPI’s impact across the globe.

Now that you’ve met PPI-CY alums Adam Hirsch and Gunnar Hagstrom, check out stories from their first days on-site back in 2010 as International Fellows here.

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by | September 17, 2012 · 7:28 pm

Alumnus Danny Ourian (’09) Remembers PPI-ME

Today, we’re catching up with Danny Ourian, former International Fellow and Program Director for PPI-ME. Danny now works for the 92nd Street Y and the New York Knicks. He is a founding parter of Global Game Changers, a sport-for-good consulting firm launched by PPI fellows and friends.  Danny also works as a personal basketball skills coach. Read more about Danny’s lifelong passion for basketball and his experience with PeacePlayers below!

Danny Ourian poses with PPI staff, alumni, and friends at the “Dropping Dimes For Peace” fundraising event in New York City in April, 2011. L to R: Brendan Tuohey, Sean Moran, Tim Roche, Justin Kidwell, Matt Minoff, Danny Ourian, Tal Alter, and John Beatson.

Can you tell us more about what you’ve been up to since PPI? Have any skills or insights you gained through PPI helped you along the way?

Since PeacePlayers, I’ve been in New York City. About six months ago, I was hired as the Director of Sports Programs for the 92nd Street Y, a community center on the Upper East Side. I’m a part-time member of the Knicks’ Community Relations department, and I also work as a personal basketball skills instructor. I started a company called Global Game Changers with some other PPI alumni. We all worked together in the Middle East, and had a desire to continue to use sport for good. So far, most of our programming involves sport for development clinics and trainings for different organizations. We have conversations about how coaches can impact their players and communities, and talk about our own experiences doing that.

A lot of the things I learned as a Peace Player stay with me to this day. I really learned the importance of being prepared. PPI also taught me to be “tight,” meaning that everything I’m bringing to the table needs to have value. There’s always something beyond sport that matters. Whenever I do a basketball lesson, I’m always trying to incorporate confidence-building and life skills.

What are some of your best memories of your work in the Middle East?

My fondest memories are of the relationships I formed with other fellows, coaches, and the players we worked with. Seeing the kids changing their ability levels and their perceptions of each other over time was amazing.

What do you feel are some of the fellowship program’s biggest strengths?

I think the American fellows bring incredible enthusiasm to the program. I think they also bring neutrality into a conflict situation. Even the English language made a difference. We used English first, and then translated it into Hebrew and Arabic- it made for a good model. The basketball background that the fellows bring is really fresh for the local participants, too. They have basketball in the Middle East, but I think there’s a sense of wanting to experience the game the way Americans experience it. When I was in the Middle East, the American fellows worked to help identify the right locations for the program, and worked to find coaches. That was very difficult. We helped the local staff take ownership of the program so that they could run it themselves.

What do you love about basketball?

This is a tough question for me. I’ll get choked up! I love the five senses as they relate to basketball- the feel, the look, the dance of the game. I love the teamwork. I think basketball is in many ways the most democratic sport. In baseball, you have a pitcher. In football, you have a quarterback. In soccer, you have a goalie. These positions are important, but they’re functions that no one else on the team can perform. In basketball, every player can and needs to perform all of the functions. All players need to dribble, pass, and shoot.  I love that about basketball.

What drew you to PPI?

I went into PPI with a desire to make an impact, to do something that mattered to me. I’d always had an inclination to do some good in the world, but I struggled with finding a way to do something positive while sticking with my first love, basketball.

I have Israeli heritage. When my father was growing up in Israel, his best friend was Arab. Peace in the Middle East is a cause that’s in my heart. I studied abroad in Jerusalem during college, and while I was there, I worked as a coach at a Palestinian private school. I also got involved with an Israeli youth movement that was very liberal, in favor of peace and cooperation with our Arab neighbors. I went into PPI thinking, what a great opportunity to use basketball to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. When I went over there, I was very idealistic. After a while, you start to see just how much of a process peace-building is. Every step forward is just a small drop in the ocean of solving that level of conflict. PPI’s work is very important.

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by | September 3, 2012 · 5:39 pm

Gunnar Hagstrom (PPI-CY ’12) Joins PPI Global Headquarters

This September, PeacePlayers International is thrilled to welcome PPI-CY alum Gunnar Hagstrom to the staff at global headquarters in Washington, DC! Gunnar, who just completed two years as an International Fellow in Cyprus, comes to DC  as our new Organizational Learning Specialist. He will be working closely with Program Director Brian Cognato to build PPI’s emerging Technical Assistance Program. Previously, Gunnar worked as an Assistant Men’s Basketball coach for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). At MIT, Gunnar worked in all aspects of the program and helped lead MIT to its first two D3 NCAA Tournament Appearances. In 2007, Gunnar graduated from Clark University in Worcester, Mass. with a degree in Business. In 2008, he received his Master’s in Business Administration, also from Clark University. While at Clark, Gunnar was a four-year member of both the men’s basketball and men’s baseball teams. Read our chat with Gunnar below to learn more about the newest member of the global team!

Gunnar (top far left) at one of his first twinnings in Cyprus.

Can you tell us more about your new position?
I’m taking over the new role of Organizational Learning Specialist. I’ll have the opportunity to spend time with each of the local sites, learn about the programming, and learn best practice methods from each local site. We’ll use what we learn to further develop our Technical Assistance Program, as well as create a knowledge-sharing network that will enable any PPI-er from any site to access the best activities and information being performed in each respective site.
What are some of your best memories of your work with PPI overseas?
My best memories are the relationships I had the chance to develop while in Cyprus.  Sometimes in America we get caught up in the rat race, but in Cyprus I was able to see how much value Cypriots place on family and spending time with family. I was lucky enough that people took me into their homes in Cyprus and treated me as part of their family. I got to share in experiences, both happy and sad, as if I shared their same last name.
What insights will you bring from your past experiences with PPI to your new role?
The knowledge and experience you get from spending over two years at a local site can’t be duplicated.  The most important insight I’ll bring with me is that kids love to play and kids love to be given opportunities.  We don’t have to reinvent the wheel because at the very core of PPI is bringing kids from different backgrounds together to play basketball… and it works.
Do have any personal goals for your new position with PeacePlayers?
I’m really excited to get out and meet, develop relationships with, and play some hoops with all of the people in each PPI site.
What are you excited to explore in your new city?
I’ve spent some time outside of DC before, but I really want to get to the different Smithsonian museums… and also see if I can track down a Doug Overton Washington Bullets jersey!

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by | August 20, 2012 · 9:03 pm

A Chat With Chris Clunie (PPI-SA ’07)

Today, we’re excited to check in with Chris Clunie (PPI-SA ’07), the Senior Coordinator for the NBA’s International Basketball Operations. Chris reflects on his work on PPI-SA’s Leadership Development Program, as well as how the experience has influenced his own career.

Chris Clunie played forward at Davidson College, where his team won the SCC Championship in 2006. (Photo by Davidson College News)

Can you tell us more about your work with the NBA? What did you take with you from your PPI experience?

I’ve been working with the NBA for a little over 4 years. We work on anything that the NBA is involved with internationally from a development and operations perspective. We do everything from coaching clinics to preseason games to youth camps, and we even do things with the Olympics. My time at PPI was short, only about 6 months, but it impacted me greatly. I was in Africa for a year on a Watson Fellowship, and I wanted to work with PeacePlayers to see how a nonprofit basketball organization worked, as well as how basketball can affect social change. It turned into a great job. So much of what I did with PPI, and what I did during that year in general, is exactly what I do now.

What are some of your best memories of your work with PPI-SA?

I was mainly tasked to rebuild the Leadership Development Program with Menzi Zungu, the Program Manager. I was helping him put together an integrated curriculum to combine life skills education with basketball. We were training the coaches and refining the youth development side. We went out all week to the six program sites to help coaches run practices. We gave them instruction and guidance on how to better their players. On Saturdays, our whole group took on the task of doing the Leadership Development Program. We looked at how to incorporate character education, HIV/AIDS, racism, racial tension, and other topics we felt were important to the players. Our goal was to help people become better coaches and mentors.

It was amazing to be with PPI at that time. I came in with three other PeacePlayers International Fellows: Justin Kidwell, Raquel Thompson, and David Flynn. It was really cool because we were all learning together. The local staff, everybody- it very much felt like a family. It was about being there to help each other.

I remember one big launch where there was music and dancing. It was so much fun. We put up a court and ran a clinic for the kids, and I got to see a city-wide tournament before I left. But the best part of the whole experience was really the day-to-day, the relationships I built with coaches and players. We still keep in touch.

Does your work bring you back to Africa?

I’ve been back to Africa on business for the Basketball Without Borders program, and I’ve been able to go back to Durban a couple of times. In 2008, I visited Durban right after an NBA camp, so I was able to bring shoes, jerseys, shorts, and t-shirts. It was great to be able to give back in that way. In 2009, I also got to go back. There was a PPI tournament that weekend, and I went with Tal Alter to see the games. On that trip, I reconnected with a player who had lost his mother while I was there in 2007. It was a great chance to see everyone. Last year, we did our NBA camp in Johannesburg, and PPI staff came up to help out.

Can you tell us more about how PPI works to develop sustainable local programs like the Leadership Development Program?

I think the work is really about sharing knowledge and expertise- you’re going out there to teach your colleagues what you know, but you also have to be willing to be taught. Here’s how we do things where I’m from, show me how you do things here, and let’s put two and two together and better this program. It was really a period of collaborating and exchanging ideas, and that’s when everybody grows. Living in South Africa and working with PPI changed my life. I wouldn’t be where I am now without that experience.

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by | August 6, 2012 · 7:22 pm

Catching Up With PPI Alum Harry Morra (NI ’08)

Congratulations to former PPI-NI Operations Manager Harry Morra and his fiancé, former PPI-NI Managing Director Kelly Lyons, who are getting married later this month! Kelly is now the Director of External Affairs for Up2Us, a national coalition of sport-for-good organizations for community-building and youth development. We wish you both all the best! In the interview below, Harry talks about his work leading a group project to evaluate the impact of PPI’s Fellowship program.

Harry (third from left) and Kelly (second from right) at a Belfast Giants hockey game with friends from PPI. On this visit to Northern Ireland in March 2011, Harry and Kelly got engaged!

You’re currently working on your graduate degree at Lehigh University. Has your experience with PPI influenced your path?

Working with PPI, you get a taste of both the education field and the nonprofit world. When I came back, I decided that I really believed in education. I wanted to continue with what I had started to build. The program I liked most was comparative international education, or Globalization and Educational Change. It involves using qualitative and quantitative methods to study differences in education programs all across the world.

I’m focusing on a project in Cambodia, where there was a mass genocide of the educated class in the 1970s under Pol Pot. Today, there are no educated 30- to 60-year-old people in Cambodia. Cambodians are thirty years into redesigning education. Out in rural communities, schools aren’t common, and it’s not natural for a family to send a 5-year old child to school. I’m working with Caring for Cambodia, an organization that tries to get kids to come to school.

Tell us more about the research project! What can you tell us about the information you gathered?

We qualitatively evaluated how the PPI experience impacted each of us, as well as the overall value of program, by looking through the eyes of the people who actually went through it. A significantly high number of alums participated in the study- I think that goes to show that PPI has a close-knit family.

We found that the fellowship program is extremely valuable to PPI and has a ton of potential to grow. We drew comparisons to Fulbright and Rhodes scholarships. People who aspire to work in public policy, international relations, international law, community development, or education can use PPI as a stepping stone.

I learned that everybody feels the same way I do- they loved the experience and thought it was just life-changing.

What are some of your best memories of your work in Northern Ireland?

I was hired to start a coach training program in Northern Ireland. At the first session I organized, only one person came. I was really disappointed. I felt like I had failed. But 18 months later when I left PPI, we had a fully functioning coach training program. We were meeting with 30 coaches at a time, both PPI people and coaches from the greater community.

A scene from the past: Harry leads a single ID session at Bunscoil Primary School

Another favorite memory is getting to do the leadership development program. We borrowed the model they were using in South Africa, analyzed it, and reshaped and remolded it for Northern Ireland. We worked it from something on paper to something real.

My third, hands-down favorite memory is running the weekly twinnings. We felt like we were doing something that was so new- the kids just gravitated toward us, and they were from such a historically divided community. There were so many structural reasons for them to stay apart. Schools across the street from each other would let the kids out a half hour apart so that they would never see each other. So many things were stacked up against integration. I loved building relationships with the kids week in and week out, and getting the kids going toward a shared future.

What were you hoping to get out of your experience with PPI? How did you grow over the course of the experience?

For me, I wanted to gain a strong sense of individuality and independence. One of the major reasons I think people should be involved with PPI is that PPI allows you to put your money where your mouth is. It’s a lost easier said than done to try to live in a foreign country, use your education to help out, and implement something you believe in. PPI puts fellows and program directors in situations where they are really responsible for making the program happen. I found the confidence to follow through with the things I say, and found out who I am and what I wanted to work on for the rest of my life.

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by | July 30, 2012 · 6:02 pm

The Peace Players International Fellowship

International Fellow (PPI-NI) Meghan Houlihan with Spring Jam 2012 champions the Liberty and team coach Ashling Hughes.

Since 2001, PPI has recruited 75 outstanding post-collegiate scholar-athletes to serve two year terms with its programs. PPI Fellows share their basketball expertise, serve as mentors and role models, and act as neutral facilitators for PPI coaches and participants. Fellows also benefit from an exceptional educational and professional experience abroad and are at the forefront of a worldwide movement to use sport as a vehicle for social change.

After completing their fellowships, PPI alumni have gone on to pursue careers in fields including finance, sports management, social entrepreneurship, and international development. They have attended graduate schools including the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Columbia University Business School, Tuft’s Fletcher School of Diplomacy, and the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. Others have gone on to work for organizations like Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, ELEVATE New Orleans, MEET (Middle East Education Through Technology), and DuPlays (Social Sports in Dubai).

Adam Hirsch (PPI-CY ’12) completed his Fellowship this spring.

As part of his graduate degree, alumnus Harry Morra (NI ’08) is leading a research project at Lehigh University to evaluate the impact Fellows and Program Directors have had on PPI, as well as how Fellows’ international experiences have helped them grow as individuals. With this formal evaluation, PPI hopes to secure ongoing funding for the Fellows program.

Stay tuned for stories from PPI alumni who share how peace-building through sport has affected them professionally and personally.

Read alumnus Adam Hirsch’s reflection on his two and a half years in Cyprus here.

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by | January 18, 2010 · 3:17 pm

The PPI Fellowship Alumni

Matt Minoff huddling up with some early PPI-ME participants.

Over the years, PPI has been proud to have dozens of outstanding young adults serve as PeacePlayers International Fellows in the field, several of whom you’ve already met right here. However, today’s Fellows, fantastic as they are, build on the legacy of those who’ve come before, our Fellowship alumni.

The only thing greater than the potential the alumni have to keep creating positive change in the world may just their supply of stories. With that in mind, we interviewed Matt Minoff, the former Managing Director of PeacePlayers International – Middle East and COO of Nabbr, an Internet start-up, to learn more about his experiences with PPI and how they influenced his own future.

PPI: Do you have a favorite memory from your time with PPI?

MM: Yes. It was at the end of the first Building Bridges Camp, a weeklong overnight camp we did at the Wingate Institute [in Natanya, Israel]. We had a whole bunch of coaches, and over a 100 Jewish-Israeli and Arab-Israeli kids there. It took probably six months to plan. And it was amazing. At the end, a kid hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to win the championship game. I remember seeing that team run onto the court – Israeli kids, Arab kids, it didn’t matter. I remember seeing them all jumping around together and going, “Whoa. This is really working.”

Read the full interview here.

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by | November 23, 2009 · 5:14 pm

Take a Peek Into the PPI – ME Past

PPI is approaching its fifth year changing perceptions in the Middle East.

From the Field will offer you new updates Monday through Friday each week. But what if that doesn’t satisfy your PPI cravings? Well, there’s Facebook, Change.org, and Twitter, but there will always be some overlap between those and our current home  here on From the Field. For something really different? Check out the former PPI – ME blog, available right here.

Started in 2006 by some of our employees in the Middle East, the former PPI – ME blog has over 100 posts from PPI days of old. So take some time and surf around, and see how we got to where we are today.

Special thanks to all our former staffers who contributed to the front- and back-end of that blog over the years. They’re the real inspiration for From the Field today.

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