For Georgetown Prep’s Zaeem Khan '28, a member of the Speech and Debate team and the Investment Club, service has always been a family tradition.

“My grandfather gave back to his community in India, and my father has continued that commitment by helping establish an ambulance and staff for emergency response, a free nursing school, and a regular school for children up to the elementary level, where we also offer Spanish and English classes," said Zaeem. "Growing up, I was surrounded by people who wanted to help others."

That example inspired Zaeem to combine his interest in technology with a desire to serve those in need.
Zaeem began coding in middle school and found an important mentor through the Islamic Community Center of Potomac (ICCP). Rifaa Qadri, a Ph.D. student at the University of Maryland, encouraged his entrepreneurial ambitions after he shared an idea for a software company while still in eighth grade. She offered him an internship, and together they began developing what would eventually become ThriveStronger.

Today, ThriveStronger is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that builds and provides secure software solutions free of charge to underserved nonprofits that otherwise could not afford them. The platform gives each partner organization its own secure portal, allowing staff, beneficiaries, and families to access information through customized workflows and role-based permissions.

Through family connections in India, Zaeem secured his first two nonprofit partners.

The first, G.R.I.R.R. (Garden Reach Institute for Rehabilitation & Research) in Kolkata, serves children and adults with disabilities. ThriveStronger helps the organization manage medical and therapy records, appointments, parent communication, billing, and donor engagement—replacing paper files and disconnected spreadsheets with a centralized system.

The second partner, Knowledge Tree, provides educational opportunities for children who lack access to formal schooling. As part of the Archdiocese of Kolkata, the same archdiocese where Mother Teresa carried out her ministry, the partnership has special meaning for Zaeem and his family.

"This started as a family project, and my dad has been the biggest inspiration behind it," said Zaeem. "I saw firsthand how much time organizations like G.R.I.R.R. spent on paperwork instead of serving people, and I wanted to help change that."

Zaeem believes the work reflects Georgetown Prep's Jesuit mission.

"The Prep mission of being a 'man for others' really resonates with me, and it's a value I've tried to carry into this project," he said.

As ThriveStronger continues to grow, Zaeem hopes to expand the platform to serve additional nonprofit organizations. Along the way, he has learned that successful technology is about much more than writing code. He explained, "The biggest lesson has been that the hardest part isn't building the software. It's understanding what each organization truly needs and earning the trust that comes with handling sensitive information. Building software for nonprofits has taught me that thoughtful engineering can itself be a form of service."

Zaeem visited Knowledge Tree during spring break to gather feedback on the app he is developing. While there, he also spent time serving lunch and dessert to the school's students.

Photo at top: Hamzah Khan, Father Franklin who runs the Rosary Church and Knowledge tree, Zaeem Khan, and Rumman Khan