I Don't Give Up on Anyone

Experienced school principal Engin Çatık is making headlines in Berlin, rescuing a second "scandal school" where bullying and escalating violence were routine. He grew up in difficult circumstances himself and understands the lived reality and struggles of many young people. He meets them with respect and engaged authority; school community matters to him.

In conversation with Hadnet Tesfai, he vividly illustrates what goes wrong in schools-a mirror of our broader social fabric. With empathy and commitment, he advocates for equal opportunity and educational justice. Only then, he argues, can our aging society have a future.

Engin Çatık was born in 1986 in Berlin and grew up there with his mother and three siblings in a prefabricated apartment block. He became a school principal at just 33. He transformed both the Johanna-Eck-Schule and the Friedrich-Bergius-Schule from troubled schools into model projects, earning widespread recognition. In 2026 he received the German Dream Award in the Role Model category. Çatık lives with his family in Berlin.

Hadnet Tesfai was born in 1979 in present-day Eritrea and studied political science, Arabic studies, and North American studies in Berlin. She began her career as a radio and television host in 1999 at Kiss FM, later hosted shows on Berlin's Fritz radio station and MTV Germany (2008-2010). She has appeared on ProSieben, Arte, and 3sat, and in 2022 hosted the opening ceremony and awards presentation at the 72nd Berlin Film Festival.