A festive start for the New University Trust in Europapark - Congratulations from the Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Schäuble

The New University Trust Freiburg (www.neue-universitaetsstiftung.de) was introduced to the public on 24th November 2006 under the motto ‘an evening for science’, with a festive Benefit Gala at Europapark. The Trust has the ambitious aim of providing 500 scholarships for students, 50 guest lectureships and 5 professorships. More than 300 guests, including long-standing patrons and friends of the University, made their way to Europapark’s Teatro dellArte to celebrate the founding of the Trust with a spectacular dinner show. All entrance fees and donations went directly towards the support of the Trust.

The main speaker of the evening was Minister of the Interior Dr. Wolfgang Schäuble, a past student of Albert-Ludwigs University, who emphasised the requisite for elite minds as an essential requirement for top-rate performances. He stated that the academic training of elites in Humboldt’s sense, or more specifically the communication of knowledge and character building of individuals, continues to be the foundation for successful social development to the present day. In this regard the Minister of the Interior pleaded for a stronger return to the existing potential, without the usual lamentations over the deterioration of the education system. The Gala was a gift from Europapark, whose owners have long been successfully active in the science market segment.

The initiative for founding the Trust was the 550th anniversary of the University the following year. As Vice-Chancellor Wolfgang Jäger emphasised, the Trust should help the University maintain its outstanding position in increasing national and international university competition. He went on to introduce two significant initiators of the Trust, both of whom are honourable senators of the University - Eugen Martin, also an honorary citizen of the City of Freiburg, and Horst Weitzmann, who was recently re-elected as Chairman of the Albert-Ludwigs University Council.

Vice-Chancellor Jäger welcomed the numerous sponsors of the anniversary amongst the many guests. Thanks to their support the University is closer to achieving its goal of financing the entire anniversary festivities through sponsorship alone.