The Bauman Fund was established in honor of the contributions and generosity of the late Rabbi Morton A. Bauman and his wife June. Rabbi Bauman's personal library of Judaica and related works was donated to UCSC upon his death and forms the core of an expanding collection, reflecting his distinctive intellectual and ethical concerns. The endowment was set up to provide a regular source of funding to support acquisition of library materials in Jewish Studies.

Materials document and explore Rabbi Bauman's wide-ranging scholarly interests within the field of Jewish Studies: liturgical, theological, and philosophical works; Jewish and Jewish American religious, social, cultural, and intellectual history; Jewish contributions to American and European society and thought; and Jewish contributions to major twentieth century intellectual discoveries and trends.

The Baumans retired to the Santa Cruz area in 1973 after 30 years at Temple Beth Hillel in North Hollywood, California. Rabbi Bauman served in Newfoundland and France during World War II. Other early pulpits included Temple Emanuel of San Francisco and Temple Israel of Hollywood.

June Bauman, a native of San Francisco, worked as an M.S.W. at Camarillo State Hospital prior to retirement. Once in the Santa Cruz area she worked at Dominican Hospital, leading family support groups for the mentally ill. In her spare time she was a docent for Big Basin State Park.