Hermann Ehlers Foundation

The Hermann Ehlers Stiftung e.V. (HES) is a political foundation based in Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, with close ties to the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). Founded on 22 March 1968 in Hanover, it is named after Hermann Ehlers (1904–1954), the second President of the Bundestag after World War II. The foundation is dedicated to promoting political education and strengthening democratic culture, rooted in the intellectual legacy of Ehlers and his vision of democracy grounded in education, dialogue, and a sense of responsibility. The foundation's educational arm, the Hermann Ehlers Akademie gGmbH (HEA), serves as an independent and non-partisan educational provider. It organizes evening events, seminars, and discussion formats that bring citizens together with experts, practitioners, and political decision-makers. The academy is a recognized provider for the Federal Agency for Civic Education (Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung) and is part of a nationwide network, particularly for the German armed forces (Bundeswehr). It offers free, low-threshold programs to foster democratic engagement in Schleswig-Holstein. Beyond education, the HES has historically provided student housing. It built and operated several student dormitories in northern Germany, at times becoming the leading private provider of student housing in the region. Due to financial constraints, most dormitories were sold to a private real estate operator in 2008, except for the main building in Kiel, which was renovated. A new student dormitory opened on the campus of Kiel University on 1 December 2019. The foundation's work is guided by a board and a board of trustees. Notable figures in its history include Kai-Uwe von Hassel, the initiator and first chairman, and Gerhard Stoltenberg, both former Minister-Presidents of Schleswig-Holstein and federal ministers. As of 2025, Sabine Sütterlin-Waack is the chairwoman, and Richard Nägler has been the managing director since 4 July 2025. The foundation focuses its educational work on Schleswig-Holstein while continuing to manage student housing in northern Germany.

The Hermann Ehlers Stiftung für staatsbürgerliche Bildung und Begabtenförderung e.V. was founded on 22 March 1968 in Hanover. The initiative came from Kai-Uwe von Hassel (1913–1997), who became its first chairman. The foundation was named after Hermann Ehlers (1904–1954), the second President of the Bundestag after World War II. The founding statute was signed at the Hotel Luisenhof in Hanover by nine signatories: Kai-Uwe von Hassel, Jutta Ehlers, Fritz Meyer-Struckmann, Karl Friedrich Möllering, Johann Christoph Besch, Friedrich Kühn, Philipp von Bismarck, Axel Seeberg, Johannes Strümpfel, and Otto Fricke. Kai-Uwe von Hassel was elected chairman, Friedrich Kühn deputy chairman, and Karl Friedrich Möllering treasurer. Jutta Ehlers, Philipp von Bismarck, Fritz Meyer-Struckmann, Axel Seeberg, and Gerhard Stoltenberg served as assessors. In August 1968, the board decided on the composition of the board of trustees and elected Heinrich Barth as its chairman. Simultaneously, construction began on the first section of a student dormitory in Kiel. At the end of 1968, the board decided to realize a second construction phase in Kiel, combining an academy and student dormitory building. The core of the academy's work was and remains the volunteer-led discussion circles, which set thematic priorities and act as impulse generators. On 14 November 1969, the topping-out ceremony for the second construction phase was celebrated. The official inauguration of the Hermann Ehlers Akademie took place on 9 July 1970. Meanwhile, Kai-Uwe von Hassel pushed for the expansion of the foundation. On 21 May 1969, the construction of a student dormitory in the Ihme-Zentrum in Hanover was decided, which was inaugurated in 1975. This was followed by further expansion of foundation activities in northern Germany with the construction of student dormitories with attached academies or communication centers in Hamburg, Osnabrück, and Oldenburg. All houses opened in 1976. With this, the foundation had 825 dormitory places and became the leading private provider of student housing in northern Germany. The academies and communication centers were also filled with life, and the foundation rented rooms in Berlin and Bremen to offer events there. In 1971, academy work began in Lower Saxony, followed by events in Berlin from 1974, in Bremen from 1977, and in Hamburg from 1979. In 1971, the Arbeitskreis Militär und Sozialwissenschaften (Working Group on Military and Social Sciences) was founded at the academy. In the tenth year of the foundation's existence, a total of 19,937 participants attended 580 events. The following years were used to consolidate structures. In this context, the foundation's name was shortened to "Hermann Ehlers Stiftung e.V." and the board was expanded to 16 members. In 1982, at the annual meeting of the Protestant Working Group of the CDU/CSU Germany, Kai-Uwe von Hassel came up with the idea of bringing together representatives from politics and the Protestant church in a lecture and discussion series. This led to the Bad Bramstedter Gespräche. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a major challenge for the Hermann Ehlers Stiftung. In 1990, approximately 9,000 participants attended 231 lecture events and seminars organized by the foundation's existing academies in the northern—future new—federal states. This accounted for nearly 30 percent of all events and 25 percent of guests reached that year. Overall, in 1990, 52,858 visitors attended 1,295 events. The year 1990 was thus a record year in terms of participants, number, and locations of events. In 1993, the Hermann Ehlers Stiftung concluded an agreement with the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, which stipulated that the Hermann Ehlers Stiftung would focus its educational work on its home state of Schleswig-Holstein and continue to manage the student dormitories in the northern German states. The following year, this restructuring was organizationally completed with the relocation of the central dormitory administration to Hanover. From the beginning, the academies and student dormitories were conceived as a unit. The goal was to offer students the opportunity for political education alongside their studies. While this system proved successful in the early years, students' participation declined significantly from the mid-1990s and almost ceased after the turn of the millennium. Because insufficient reserves had been built up over the decades due to low rents for comprehensive renovation, the board decided in 2008 to sell all dormitories except the main building in Kiel to a private real estate operator. In return, the dormitory in Kiel was renovated. The academy and the foundation's administration moved into the former guest house of the Schleswig-Holstein state government. On 1 December 2019, a new student dormitory opened on the campus of the Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, built by the Hermann Ehlers Stiftung.

• 2025

  Richard Nägler becomes managing director on 4 July

• 2019

  New student dormitory opens on Kiel University campus on 1 December

• 2008

  Board decides to sell all dormitories except Kiel main building to private operator; Kiel dormitory renovated

• 1993

  Agreement with Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung: focus education on Schleswig-Holstein, continue dormitory management in northern states

• 1990

  Record year: 52,858 visitors attend 1,295 events

• 1982

  Bad Bramstedter Gespräche initiated by Kai-Uwe von Hassel

• 1979

  Events begin in Hamburg

• 1977

  Events begin in Bremen

• 1976

  Dormitories with academies open in Hamburg, Osnabrück, and Oldenburg; foundation reaches 825 dormitory places

• 1975

  Student dormitory in Ihme-Zentrum, Hanover inaugurated

• 1974

  Events begin in Berlin

• 1971

  Academy work begins in Lower Saxony; Arbeitskreis Militär und Sozialwissenschaften founded

• 1970

  Official inauguration of Hermann Ehlers Akademie on 9 July

• 1969

  Topping-out ceremony for second construction phase in Kiel on 14 November

• 1968

  Foundation established on 22 March in Hanover as "Hermann Ehlers Stiftung für staatsbürgerliche Bildung und Begabtenförderung e.V."

• 1968

  Construction of first student dormitory section begins in Kiel

Non-partisan, independent political education provider affiliated with the CDU, focused on strengthening democracy through dialogue and civic engagement.

• Hermann Ehlers Akademie (HEA)

  Independent and non-partisan educational provider of the foundation, offering evening events, seminars, and discussion formats.

• Student dormitories

  The foundation built and operated student housing in Kiel, Hanover, Hamburg, Osnabrück, and Oldenburg; most were sold in 2008, but a new dormitory opened in Kiel in 2019.

• Bad Bramstedter Gespräche

  A lecture and discussion series bringing together representatives from politics and the Protestant church, initiated in 1982.

• Arbeitskreis Militär und Sozialwissenschaften

  Working Group on Military and Social Sciences, founded at the academy in 1971.

1. 1Hermann Ehlers Akademie (HEA) | Hermann Ehlers Stiftung (HES)hermann-ehlers.de
2. 2Über uns - Hermann Ehlers Akademie (HEA) | Hermann Ehlers Stiftung (HES)hermann-ehlers.de
3. 3Stellenangebote - Hermann Ehlers Akademie (HEA) | Hermann Ehlers Stiftung (HES)hermann-ehlers.de
4. 4Hermann Ehlers Akademie gGmbH - Hermann Ehlers Akademie (HEA) | Hermann Ehlers Stiftung (HES)hermann-ehlers.de
5. 5Hermann Ehlers foundation - Wikidatawikidata.org
6. 6Hermann Ehlers Stiftung - Wikipediade.wikipedia.org