George H. Herbst

BIOGRAPHY

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George H. Herbst came to Rollins College in 1996 as vice president for business and finance. Although he is not an architect, he does have a special interest in architecture and design. In addition to his work at Rollins, Herbst has also been chairman of Winter Park's Central Park Committee, chairman of the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce, and a chair of the Building Committee of the Chamber, among other distinguished posts.

Herbst has a B.A. in political science from St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas and an M.B.A. from the University of Notre Dame. For a period of time, he served as an administrator in K-12 schools before he spent seven years in the post of vice president for finance and administration at Cranbrook Educational Community in Michigan. For the next four years, he also assumed a similar role at the University of Dallas before coming to Rollins.

 During his time at Rollins, Herbst was responsible for overseeing the construction and renovation of thirty projects at the College. These buildings include the president's residence at the Barker House, the Alfond Sports Center, and the Cornell Campus Center. Additionally, the Herbst Overlook on Lake Virginia, situated behind the Alfond Sports Center complex, is dedicated in his honor.   Herbst also played a major role in the construction of the SunTrust Plaza on Park Avenue and the parking garage. In recognition of his efforts to promote public awareness of architecture's importance, in 2004, Herbst was presented with the Award of Merit from the Orlando Chapter of the American Institute of Architects . He was also named Winter Park Citizen of the Year in 2005.

Working with architect John Cunningham, whom he met through his work at Rollins, Herbst was able to build his dream home, Lugano Vista. Situated in Winter Park, the house was designed as a piece of architectural art. The modern Bauhaus movement inspired home showcased his personal collection of contemporary art.

Herbst Discusses SunTrust Plaza

• "...So, I said 'I should live so long to have gone through all of that and in the end see it held up as the model of good development..."
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• "...But we had to vacate the building.  So we announced that in a year and a half we were going to close it for the summer and we were going to remove the asbestos.  The only way we could remove the asbestos from the hallways was to close the building..."
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• "...I was very, very out into the local community.  And my last tie to the chamber was actually when I was on sabbatical here.  They were between presidents and they asked me and I served for three months as the CEO of the chamber..."
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• "...A lot of people think the endowment building came from the Cornell gift.  Certainly the Cornell gift was significant, and I was the one who closed out that estate and dealt with all of that.  But, um, the financial health had been achieved prior to the Cornell gift; the Cornell gift was over and above in strengthening the financial position of the college..."
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• "...President Bornstein was very frustrated by a lot of architectural work which looked like resorts or office buildings or planned communities and that’s not collegiate architect-landscape.  And so, we ultimately ended the search we hired Carol..."
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

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Herbst Discussess Renovating Sutton Place

Herbst Discusses Working with the Winter Park Community

Herbst Discusses Rollins' Financial Health

Herbst Discusses Landscape Architect Carol Johnson