Georgetown Student Wins HBKU Student Leader of the Year

“Know when to lead from behind.”

That’s Indeewaree Thotawattage’s advice. The Georgetown student is this year’s recipient of the HBKU Student Leader of the Year award.

HBKU, also known as Hamad Bin Khalifa University, is the emerging research university that partners with eight international universities at Education City, one of which is Georgetown University.

Indee, a rising senior at Georgetown, says that “it felt great to be recognized at an HBKU award ceremony. Sometimes students get caught up in just their own home institution, be it Georgetown, CMU, Northwestern or others.”

Selected from a host of nominees, all associated with one of the branch campuses at Education City, Indee says she feels extremely honored to have received the prize. “It was very inspiring to be surrounded by individuals who truly care about the community that they’re in and who really want to do good work.”

Indee’s leadership roles at HBKU are expansive. She works as a community development advisor in the QF residence halls where she approves and guides programming for the dormitories, she is also the Georgetown student representative for the HBKU-wide academic integrity committee, and she is a steering committee member for the development of the HBKU leadership curriculum.

Indee says her leadership trajectory started with Georgetown. Her freshman and sophomore years she served in Georgetown’s student government and she worked closely with the founding of Diwan magazine. She also found time to play on the women’s basketball team.

“One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from Georgetown is that being a leader does not necessarily mean being at the front of a room.” Indee explains: “Being a team player is also part of being a good leader. Trusting the individuals in each group and helping them realize their own potential, and allowing them to take charge, are the signs of a good leader.”

For Indee, she wants students to understand that there are many leadership opportunities: “Be engaged and be receptive to all the environment has to offer. This is such a thriving academic environment. There are classes, there are lectures, there are seminars going on, and there are clubs and organizations to get involved in. We are a diverse community but we are also unified.”

“It really goes back to the interconnectedness of human beings,” she adds. “Being a part of this tapestry on campus is a wonderful experience.”