Florida State University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Business set aside Thursday, April 16 to tip a red hat – or hundreds of red hats – to the college’s biggest benefactor.
The college’s inaugural Red Hat Day featured students, faculty, staff, alumni and university officials who gathered, topped in red, in honor and celebration of Dr. Herbert Wertheim, whose record philanthropic investment launched a new era of preeminence in the college and whose ever-present red fedora has emerged as a collegewide symbol of distinction and optimism.
“Wear your red hat with joy,” Dr. Wertheim said during an afternoon ceremony inside the Herbert Wertheim Center for Business Excellence.
Dr. Wertheim’s recent $65 million commitment – the largest endowment in FSU’s history and the second-largest gift the university has ever received – named the college and its new state-of-the-art-facility, the Herbert Wertheim Center for Business Excellence. The investment also includes funds that, for starters, expand scholarships, enhance professional development, enrich faculty development and embrace emerging academic trends.
Red Hat Day fittingly focused on students, giving many a first opportunity to greet the munificent man in the red hat. The event included lunch from 4 Rivers Smokehouse; a “Hang with Herbie” networking event; multiple food trucks; and speeches by FSU President Richard McCullough, Wertheim College Dean Michael D. Hartline and Dr. Wertheim himself.
Student leaders passed out red hats emblazoned with the college’s new branding and offered various other Wertheim College swag to all who attended.
“I wear this red hat proudly. Don’t you?” said emcee Jaclyn Madson, a Wertheim College honors student who will graduate in May. “We’ll forever keep, and maybe even sometimes wear, these red hats, which symbolize global excellence at the Herbert Wertheim College of Business.”
Hartline said the red hats “illustrate our connection, our enthusiasm and our unified pursuit of excellence and greatness.”
He added: “We’re here to celebrate you, our students and faculty and staff. We’re also here to celebrate Dr. Wertheim and his vision and generosity for investing so much in us.”
Dr. Wertheim told attendees to “think about the red hat as something that gives you energy, and gives you truth, and gives you creativity.”
Dr. Wertheim, an inventor, investor and philanthropist who lives in Palm Beach, said he became attached to his headwear almost two decades ago when he returned to South Florida from a trip to Ecuador wearing a red hat. He was teaching a medical school class at the time, and virtually every student and colleague he encountered told him how good the hat looked on him. He finally declared, jokingly, “I’m never taking it off!”
McCullough said the red hats make a “bold statement” and reflect the story of Dr. Wertheim, a self-made billionaire who overcame a modest upbringing and academic challenges, became a Doctor of Optometry and launched Brain Power Incorporated, the world’s largest manufacturer of ophthalmic instruments and chemicals. Dr. Wertheim also holds numerous patents and invented a coating for eyeglass lenses that filter and absorb dangerous ultraviolet rays.
“He has lived the American dream,” McCullough said of Dr. Wertheim, “and he’s an amazing philanthropist, giving back to public universities and so many causes that change people’s lives.”
McCullough presented Dr. Wertheim with a framed example of an updated FSU business diploma, now reflecting the Herbert Wertheim College of Business.
“We hope that it will be a reminder to all of our students of how you shape Florida State University and our lives,” McCullough said.
“I’m the luckiest guy in the world,” Dr. Wertheim said, standing between McCullough and Hartline at the podium. “I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for these two and the perseverance they’ve had. It has been six years since I first came here and said, ‘We need to do something about health care.’”
Dr. Wertheim’s investment includes funding for the Wertheim Business of Healthcare Initiative, which will prepare Wertheim College students for impactful careers in the healthcare workforce. The initiative aligns with FSU Health, a university-wide enterprise to transform health care in Florida.
“Our system is broken,” Wertheim said about health care, “and only businesspeople can fix it.”
