History and purpose

The Erman Trust was established in 1994, under the auspices of the Auckland Zionist Society, with a very generous endowment from the late Alice Erman. The purpose of the fund is to provide financial assistance to members of the New Zealand Jewish community who wish to further their development or community involvement by participating in programmes in Israel. With what they have gained they are expected to return to New Zealand and contribute in various ways to the enrichment of their local Jewish communities. To date over 320 applicants have benefited from funding from the Trust and over $1.75m has been distributed.

What gets funded

The Erman trust has supported different types of applications in the past, for example:

• Hachshara leadership programmes of youth movements such as Habonim, Bnei Akiva and Hineni
• Programmes supported by AUJS (Australasian Union of Jewish Students)
• Israel by Choice, a programme run by Masa Israel, a joint venture of the Government of Israel and the Jewish Agency for Israel
• March of the Living
• Community leaders attending international conferences and workshops
• Representatives from the Holocaust Education Centre in Wellington to visit Yad Vashem and other sites and organisations in Israel
• Teachers from Kadimah College to visit schools in  Israel to improve the Jewish and Hebrew content of its programmes.

Closing dates

Please note that there three rounds for applications and the closing dates are 20 March, 20 June and 20 September.

Note

• Those who go on longer programmes (10-11 months) are expected to contribute two years of community service. This usually takes the form of leadership roles in youth movements, but service can be rendered in other ways. Shorter programmes require a proportionate contribution.
• The Trust also reserves the right to modify its allocations of grants if for any reason an applicant does not attend the full duration of a published programme or if it is cancelled.

The committee

The Trustees: David Kranz (Chairperson), Liora Bercovitch, Roanne Jacobson, Osnat Kushnir, Elaine Silverman, Roy Smollan, Maia Szecket.  Treasurer: Ron Eisig