The Lotte E. Scharfman Memorial Citizen Education Fund was established in memory of a League president who died in 1970 on her forty-second birthday. Lotte Scharfman was a refugee who escaped with her family from Austria during World War II, and who devoted her life to working for the democratic process and to helping citizens gain access to government. She is widely credited with coining the phrase, “Democracy is not a spectator sport.” The Fund currently supports a variety of voter service and citizen education programs, including:
Voting Activities
The Scharfman Fund supports all of LWVMA’s voter registration, education, engagement, and protection activities. During the 2018 election cycle, the Fund’s MOVE (Massachusetts Voter Engagement) 2018 intiative reached thousands of Massachusetts voters and provided them with the information they needed to make informed choices at the polls. For further information about our MOVE 2018 initiative, click here.
Student Video Contest
The Scharfman Fund’s annual student video contest is designed to foster civic awareness among young people and provide them with an opportunity to share their opinions and viewpoints on matters of public importance.
The contest is open to all Massachusetts high school students, who are invited to submit videos on a particular theme relating to government or democracy. Winners are awarded cash prizes and invited to an award ceremony at the Massachusetts State House.
For further information about current and past contests, click here.
Forums and Conferences
The Scharfman Fund educates and engages citizens through public conversations on timely and important issues. We are proud to sponsor and co-sponsor events that bring together experts in their fields to share research, analysis, and recommendations with members of LWVMA and the general public. For further information about recent events, click here.
Lotte E. Scharfman Citizen Education Grant Program
The Lotte E. Scharfman Citizen Education Grant program helps our local Leagues carry out events and projects that increase citizen participation in the democratic process, study key community issues in an unbiased manner, and/or enable people to seek positive solutions to public policy issues through education and conflict management. For further information about the Lotte E. Scharfman Citizen Education Grant program, click here.
LWVMA Citizen Education Fund Board of Trustees, 2017-2019
| Chair: | Mary Ann Ashton |
| Treasurer: | Andrea Kozinetz |
| Trustees: | Susan Abrams |
| Cindy Ku | |
| Kate Boland | |
| Lee Bona | |
| Jean Cherdack | |
| Kris Eastman | |
| Marilyn Peterson | |
| Lisa Steiner | |
| Judy Zaunbrecher |