British Friends of the Hebrew University
The British Friends of the Hebrew University (BFHU) is a British charity set up to support and promote the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. It allows the University to support students and academics, to fund research projects and promote opportunities to study at the University.[1]
Contents
History
The charity was established in 1926, and is the oldest established Jewish charity in support of higher education in the UK. It was started Sir Philip Hartog and Sir Herbert Samuel who initiated book collections for the University’s library, founded the first scholarships and organised guest lectures. Amongst the earliest financial contributors were the families of Ernest Franklin, Richard Gregory, James de Rothschild, Redcliffe Salaman, Charles Singer and Chaim Weizmann.[2]
Activities
According to BFHU website, the Friends help fund scientific, medical and engineering research for the ‘improvement of people’s lives in Israel and worldwide’, as well as providing scholarships to British students studying at the HU. They have also carried on the early work of Samuel and Hartog, organising HU speakers and ambassadorial students to the UK.'[2] In 2014 the BFHU sponsored seven HU professors to participate in the Limmud Conference, four ambassadorial students at the Leeds Festival for Peace and seven other professors to lectures and events around the UK.[2]
People
Board
In 2014:[3] | Jenny Arwas, non-executive director of Employment Opportunities, board member of the Prince's Trust London Council and member of the Spanish and Portugese Synagogue[4][5] | Graham Edwards, a director at a number of companies and charities including OneVoice Europe,[6] who try to build bridges between pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian communities in Europe and support the work of OneVoice Israel, OneVoice Palestine and OneVoice US[7] | Isaac Kaye, a donor to the Labour Party, member of Labour Friends of Israel and a key-backer to British Israel Communications and Research Centre | Jonathan Marks | Tony Page | Alan Philipp (treasurer), former treasurer of Jewish Care, chairman of the Jewish Care Pension Fund[8] and sits on the board of the Anglo-Jewish Association[9] | Marc Polonsky, a partner of law firm White & Case, trustee of the Polonsky Foundation, member of the board of the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute and governor of the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies (N.B Martin Paisner is a trustee and Berwin Leighton Paisner provide legal advice to the centre)[10][11] | Margo Schwartz | Elad Shraga, the global head of credit solutions group Deutsche Bank[12] | Joe Smouha QC
Trustees
In 2014:[13] | Bernard Myers, a special adviser and former managing director of N M Rothschild & Sons Limited, director of Rothschild Bank AG, an associate governor of the Hebrew University and member of the Jewish Leadership Council[14] | Isaac Kaye | Jonathan Marks | Margo Schwartz | Alan Philipp | Howard Shore, a director of Shore Capital Limited, UK Group of Hotels Plc and Puma Nominees Limited and a director of The Weizmann Institure Foundation[15][16] Henry Gabay | Jonathan Paisner, former solicitor at family company Berwin Leighton Paisner, founder of LMN Capital Partners, director of Puma Investments and member of Shore Investments.
Former trustees
Geoffrey Simmonds, resigned from his role in 2005. In 2008 he called for the Charity Commission to investigate the BFHU's handling of millions of pounds worth of donor funds. Simmonds claimed the university had been missing out on funds because the charity had been deducting money for management costs.[17]
President and vice-presidents
Circa 2014
John Sacher, president. [18] | Rabbi Tony Bayfield, vice-president. Head of the Movement for Reform Juddaism[19] | Rabbi Dr Abraham Levy, vice-president | Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks, vice-president | Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg | HE Israeli Ambassador
Council of patrons
HH Judge Clive Callman [20] | Lady Collins | Lord Dyson | Michael J Gee, director of The Oxford Institute for Yiddish Studies and former director at The London Jewish Cultural Centre and The Spiro Institute for the Study of Jewish History and Culture[21] | Sir Martin Gilbert | Isaac Kaye | Dr Lionel Kopelowitz, former president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews[22] | Stella Lucas | Norman Naftalin | Lord David Pannick QC | Suzanne Perlman-Sternberg | Wendy Pollecoff, trustee and treasurer to the Jewish Youth Fund, trustee to the Wiener Library and the Jewish Chronicle Trust and a former trustee to the BFHU for ten years[23] | Dr Leonard Polonsky, founder and president of Hansard Global plc[24] | Felix Posen, founder of The Posen Foundation, which aims to make Jewish education easily accessible[25] | Warren Roiter | Dr Leonard Slotover | Anthony Spitz | Professor Stuart Stanton | Sir Sigmund Sternberg, life president of Movement for Reform Judaism, former sole patron of the International Council of Christians and Jews, co-founder of the Three Faiths Forum, vice president of the World Congress of Faiths and co-ordinator of the religious component of the World Economic Forum[26] | Lady Wolfson of Marylebone, one of the UK's leading philanthropists and a trustee of the Lord Leonard and Lady Estelle Wolfson Foundation[27] | Lord Woolf | Fred Worms
Notes
- ↑ British Friends of the Hebrew University Mission Statement. , Accessed 16 December 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 British Friends of the Hebrew University History of the British Friends. Accessed 16 December 2014.
- ↑ Board British Friends of the Hebrew University, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Elizabeth Pears Hendon charity worker is 'wonderful choice' for MBE Hendon Times, 2 January 2009, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Marcus Dysch How community fared honours list The Jewish Chronicle, 31 December 2008, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Graham Edwards Companies in the UK, 15 December 2014
- ↑ Where One Voice Movement, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Alan Philipp Linkedin, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Candice Krieger Alan Philipp recognised as a doyen of data publishing The Jewish Chronicle, 10 February 2010, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Marc Polonsky Bloomberg Businessweek, accessed 15 December
- ↑ Charity details – Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies Charity Performance, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Elad Shraga Milken Institute, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ British Friends of the Hebrew University] Open Charity, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Bernie Myers Jewish Leadership Council, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Howard Paul Shore Company Check, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Weizmann Institute Foundation, Final Trustees Report & Annual Accounts 2008 accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Simon Rocker Ex-trustee turns on Friends of Hebrew U The Jewish Chronicle, 29 May 2008, accessed 15 December 2014
- ↑ Presidents and vice-presidents British Friends of the Hebrew University, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Rabbi Dr Tony Bayfield Reform Juddaism, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Council of patrons British Friends of the Hebrew University, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Michael Joseph Gee Company Check, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ London diners raise £350k for the Board of Deputies The Jewish Chronicle, 26 November 2010, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Meet the team British Friends of the Hebrew University, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Leonard S Polonsky Bloomberg Businessweek, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ About us Posen Foundation, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Sir Sigmund Sternberg Reform Judaism, accessed 16 December 2014
- ↑ Trustees Lord and Lady Wolfson, accessed 16 December 2014
