In a festive ceremony, Minister President Dietmar Woidke presented the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany to Prof. Dr. Helmut Kn¨¹ppel on behalf of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
"With great commitment and vigour, he has fought together with the city of Potsdam and the state for the prioritisation of education and science as well as improved funding," it was said at the award ceremony in the Potsdam State Chancellery.

Prof. Dr. Helmut Kn¨¹ppel, born in Freital in 1942, studied social work at the Social Education Seminar in Dortmund and economics at the Ruhr University in Bochum. From 1971 to 1976 he was a lecturer and from 1977 to 1991 Professor of Social Policy at the University of Applied Sciences in Bielefeld. From 1991 to 1993, Prof. Dr. Kn¨¹ppel was founding rector and from 1993 to 2000 rector of the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam. From 1995 to 2000, he was spokesman for the Brandenburg University Rectors' Conference. He taught as a professor of political science specialising in social policy at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam until 2007.

Since retiring in 2007, Prof. Dr. Helmut Kn¨¹ppel has continued to be actively involved in university politics and is a member of the Potsdam City Forum, the Social Democratic Science Forum and the board of the FH Potsdam Supporters¡¯ Association.

"With your voluntary work, you make yourself the voice of all those who are dependent on the representation of their interests or are less recognised due to their age or circumstances. Through your work, you make an impressive contribution to greater social participation and thus to strengthening our democracy. This cannot be praised highly enough," said the Minister President.