ALEXANDRA, JÖRN & MATTHIAS CLOPPENBURG
Matthias Cloppenburg ’20 comes from a family of global explorers – both of his parents are AUP alumni. He began his BA in International and Comparative Politics in 2017 and admits that his parents may have had a little influence over his choice of university. He was also attracted by AUP’s international atmosphere and wanted to return to Paris, having previously lived there. “Another reason for choosing AUP for me, personally, was to find a university that uses the American educational system, which is more to my liking.” Alexandra Cloppenburg ’94 (International Business Administration) and Jörn Cloppenburg ’95 (Political Science) met in the fall of 1992 at a celebration hosted by the University. After graduating, Jörn completed an MBA at the École National des Ponts et Chaussées while Alexandra started working at IBM. The couple moved to Düsseldorf, Germany in 1997 and has since also lived in Paris. Matthias is the eldest of Jörn and Alexandra’s three children. Does his experience differ from that of his parents? “He probably doesn’t have the
same culture shock,” says Alexandra. “I think that already speaking French fluently may have eased his experience of living in Paris when he started at AUP.” Matthias views his time in the city as quite different from that of his parents – though he does have English classes with Professor Adrian Harding, who also taught his mother. He notes that AUP’s campus has evolved significantly, citing new buildings as the most dramatic development since his parents’ time. “Nothing can really stay the same in Paris,” he says. In his freshman year, Matthias worked at the AMEX Café in the Combes Student Life Center. “Although it’s not at Bosquet anymore, I am sure that it has a bit of the same purpose it had when I was at AUP!” says Alexandra. “AUP was the stepping stone in our relationship, where it all started for Jörn and me. Now it’s even more special because after 20 years our son is following in both of our footsteps by attending the University – that’s pretty special to us as a family!” ALU M N I N OTE S
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