On behalf of Ernst Reuter. In 1948 the Mayor of Berlin, Ernst Reuter, played a key role in the founding of Freie Universität. In 1954, in accordance with his wishes and just a few months after his death, a funding association was set up, and it bears his name. The Ernst Reuter Society of Friends, Sponsors, and Alumni of Freie Universität Berlin e. V. currently has 7,700 members. It awards the Ernst Reuter Prize for the best dissertations at Freie Universität annually. It also provides funding for other activities, in particular for early-career scholars and scientists.
 

Sources and additional information

Ernst Reuter, a former mayor of West Berlin, played a key role in founding Freie Universität in 1948. Shortly after his death on January 27, 1954, the nonprofit organization Ernst Reuter Society of Supporters and Friends of Freie Universität Berlin e. V. (ERG) was founded as a central donors’ association for alumni and other supporters of the university. The ERG provides nonmaterial and material support in order to further develop Freie Universität as a place of innovative ideas. The number of members of the Ernst Reuter Society has been growing continuously for years. Currently, it has 7,700 members.

• Website of the Ernst Reuter Society (in German)