Dr. Prashant Prabhu Awarded with 2022 Distinguished Global Alumni Award

The Distinguished Global Alumni Award honors alumni who were international students while here at NC State and have used their education to distinguish themselves through outstanding achievements. Distinguished accomplishments may include helping to solve a global problem, contributing important new knowledge to their field, supporting the professional development of young people, achieving success in industry or innovation, or in other ways bringing distinction to themselves and to NC State. 

You can watch a recording of the awards ceremony here.

The following text includes excerpts from nomination materials.

2022 Distinguished Global Alumni Award: Recipient 

• Dr. Prashant Prabhu
  • Instructor, International Business MBA Course,
  • Clemson University
  • M.S., Textile Chemistry; Ph.D., Fiber and Polymer Science
  • Class of 1977 and 1979

Since his time as a student at NC State, Dr. Prabhu has used his education from the Wilson College of Textiles to distinguish himself through outstanding professional and globally significant achievements. Dr. Prabhu embarked on a 35-year career with the Michelin Group, which is an international leader in sustainable mobility. His time with the company began at the Michelin America Research and Development Corporation in Greenville, S.C. By the age of 45, he had become president of that division. Then, after many years in research and development, he moved overseas to assume responsibility for Michelin’s earthmover and industrial tires global business unit, based in Clermont-Ferrand, France. Dr. Prabhu held that position for five years and then accepted an assignment to establish a Michelin manufacturing facility in India. He supervised the Indian start-up from his base in Singapore while serving as head of Michelin Asia-Pacific. He later moved to Dubai, where he headed up Michelin’s Africa-India-Middle East division. In this leadership role, his responsibilities included full-time oversight of Michelin’s “global incubator program,” which he directed initially from Dubai and later, starting in 2014, from Greenville, S.C. He retired from Michelin that same year. In retirement, Dr. Prabhu is teaching an international business course for the MBA program at Clemson University, a course he developed based on his experiences in the business world. 

2022 Distinguished Global Alumni Award: Finalists

• Dr. Nancy Awwad
  • Photopolymer Scientist, 3D Systems
  • Ph.D., Chemistry
  • Class of 2020

Dr. Nancy Awwad’s expertise in visible light polymerization and polymerization process improvement projects are critical to the US and international pursuits of cleaner, “greener” alternatives to current production and manufacturing practices. Dr. Awwad has shared her expertise in a textbook chapter for future students and many professional and educational presentations in the US and internationally. 

• Dr. Ahmad Alsabbagh
• Commissioner for Nuclear Fuel Cycle Secretary-General, Secretary General, Jordan Atomic Energy Commission
• M.S. and P.hD., Nuclear Engineering
• Class of 2011 and 2014

In addition to his role as Commissioner, Dr. Ahmad Alsabbagh also serves as the Chairperson for the Jordanian research and training reactor safety committee. Well-published in the field of radiation and nuclear engineering, Dr. Alsabbagh has received the American Nuclear Society’s Mark Mills Award for submitting the best original technical paper contributing to the advancement of science and engineering related to the atomic nucleus. While at NC State, he volunteered with the Office of International Students and continues contributing to NC State by cultivating a pipeline for the nuclear energy program by actively encouraging students to attend, and supporting them in their application processes. 

• Mr. Elmas Hasanovikj
  • Adviser, Cabinet of the Minister of Defense, Macedonia Ministry of Defense
  • M.S., International Studies
  • Class of 2018

Mr. Hasanovikj is an emerging leader on questions of international security in North Macedonia and the larger region. Since its independence, the country has been a player in the geopolitical game for influence between Russia and the US/EU. Elmas has been key in shaping Macedonia’s integration into the West, in particular regarding security cooperation with the EU and NATO. He continues to contribute to NC State by building connections between NC State and agencies and universities in Macedonia and has helped NC State’s Master of International Studies program build a reputation with Fulbright.