Rolf Ahlrichs

Prof. Dr. Rolf Ahlrichs is a Professor at Evangelische Hochschule Ludwigsburg, where he holds the Chair of Theory and Practice of Social Work and Diaconia / Youth and Adult Education. Since the summer semester of 2025, he has served as Dean (Dekan) and Academic Program Director for the B.A. in Social Work and International Social Work since 2024.

• Chair: Theory and Practice of Social Work and Diaconia / Youth and Adult Education
• Dean, Evangelische Hochschule Ludwigsburg (2025–present)
• Academic Program Director, B.A. Social Work and International Social Work (2024–present)

Education:

• PhD in Social Sciences (summa cum laude), University of Hamburg, 2018
• Master of Arts in Social Management, Evangelische Hochschule Freiburg, 2011
• Diplom-Sozialpädagoge und Diakon, Evangelische Hochschule für Sozialpädagogik Hamburg, 1997

Research Interests: His work focuses on democracy education and political education within extracurricular child and youth work, adult education, and community/association pedagogy. He emphasizes experiential education and social pedagogical professionalization, particularly through participatory research methods.

Scientific Projects include the Evaluation of the Partnership for Democracy Stuttgart (2025) and studies on youth participation at the district level in Baden-Württemberg (2023–2024). His work also explores knowledge transfer in child and youth work and deliberative walks as participatory research tools.

Professional Affiliations: Ahlrichs is a member of the supervisory board of the Evangelische Gesellschaft Stuttgart, chair of Release – Drug Counseling and Help, and part of the German Society for Social Work (DGSA) and hlb-Bundesvereinigung (German University Professors' Association).

Publications analyze democratic participation in youth associations, the role of professional organizations in political education, and intersections between sports clubs and democracy-building. He has authored monographs on youth associations and democracy, including Demokratiebildung im Jugendverband (2019) and Demokratische Partizipation in der Jugendverbandsarbeit (2022).