Herbert A. Wertheim (born May 23, 1939)
is an American
optometrist
Optometry is a specialized health care profession that involves examining the eyes and related structures for defects or abnormalities. Optometrists are health care professionals who typically provide comprehensive primary eye care.
In the Uni ...
,
inventor
An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...
, billionaire businessman, and
philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
. He is the founder and president of Brain Power Incorporated (BPI).
He has served as chairman of the Dr. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Family Foundation since 1977. Wertheim serves as the Founding Chairman of the
FIU Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
The Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine is the medical school of Florida International University, located in Modesto A. Maidique Campus in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida. The College of Medicine is one of the university's 26 schools ...
, as advisor to The Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Florida International University, and as honorary chairman of
The Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering at the University of Florida.
Early life (1939–1957)
Wertheim was born on May 23, 1939, in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
to Jewish refugee parents who fled Nazi Germany. In 1945, he and his family moved to
Hollywood, Florida
Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...
, and lived in an apartment above the family's bakery. He was diagnosed with dyslexia and started skipping school. His father was often abusive to him, prompting him to run away periodically. At age 16, he faced a judge on truancy charges.
He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1956 at the age of 17 and was stationed in San Diego. He studied physics and chemistry in the Navy before working on naval aviation. It was here where he made his first investment, buying stock in aviation company Lear Jet. Wertheim is married to his wife, Nicole, for 50 years Wertheim has two children, Erica Wertheim and Vanessa Wertheim.
Education
Wertheim is a graduate of Brevard Community College (now
Eastern Florida State College
Eastern Florida State College, formerly Brevard Community College, is a public college in Brevard County, Florida. It is a member of the Florida College System and has campuses in Cocoa, Melbourne, Palm Bay, and Titusville, as well as a Virtu ...
),
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, and the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
, where he studied
electrical
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...
and
computer engineering
Computer engineering (CoE or CpE) is a branch of electrical engineering and computer science that integrates several fields of computer science and electronic engineering required to develop computer hardware and software. Computer engineers ...
. He also received a B.S. in
optical engineering Optical engineering is the field of science and engineering encompassing the physical phenomena and technologies associated with the generation, transmission, manipulation, detection, and utilization of light. Optical engineers use optics to solve ...
and a
Doctor of Optometry
Optometry is a specialized health care profession that involves examining the eyes and related structures for defects or abnormalities. Optometrists are health care professionals who typically provide comprehensive primary eye care.
In the Uni ...
from the
Southern College of Optometry
The Southern College of Optometry is a privately owned educational institution located in Memphis, Tennessee. It specializes in optometry and offers a comprehensive program in this field.
History
The Southern College of Optometry (SCO) is a pri ...
in association with the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...
Medical School.
Philanthropy
Florida International University
Wertheim served as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Board member of the Florida International University Foundation from 1988 through 2001. He was a founding member of the Florida International University Board of Trustees at its establishment by the
Florida Legislature
The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Cons ...
in 2000 and was reappointed for a second term in 2003. As chairman of FIU's Academic Affairs Committee he won approval of the University's Trustees for the Medical College and was asked to chair the Medical College Initiative. After a multi-year legislative campaign including community and university involvement, the FIU Medical College was established.
![FIU Medicine](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/FIU_Medicine.png)
In May 2009, the Dr. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Family Foundation made a $20 million contribution which becomes $40 million with state matching funds to establish multiple
endowments including eight
endowed chair
A financial endowment is a legal structure for managing, and in many cases indefinitely perpetuating, a pool of financial, real estate, or other investments for a specific purpose according to the will of its founders and donors. Endowments are of ...
s for the Medical College. In June 2009, the FIU Board of Trustees named the new college the
Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
The Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine is the medical school of Florida International University, located in Modesto A. Maidique Campus in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida. The College of Medicine is one of the university's 26 schools ...
in his honor and named him Founding Chairman of the College of Medicine and Trustee Emeritus of the University.
Wertheim and his wife Nicole have enabled gifts of millions of dollars to the University's music, theater, dance, and business educational programs. These include the 585-seat Concert Hall and a 300-seat Mainstage Theatre at the
Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center (WPAC) at FIU. In September 2013, FIU named the Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences in honor of Wertheim's wife Nicole.
University of Florida
In October 2015, the University of Florida announced the naming of the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering in honor of the Wertheim Family Foundation's gift of $50 million, which will, among other things, fund an 80,000 sq.ft. Engineering Innovation building and foster collaboration between the University of Florida and Florida International University.
In October 2022, he donated $100 million to the
University of Florida Health
University of Florida Health (UF Health) is a medical network associated with the University of Florida. It includes two academic hospitals – UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville and UF Health Jacksonville – and several other hospitals an ...
's
Scripps Institute, and it was renamed ''Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology''.
Other charitable activities
Wertheim has served as a member of the
University of Miami
The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...
Citizens Board,
Dade County Zoological Society,
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association (AHA) is a nonprofit organization in the United States that funds cardiovascular medical research, educates consumers on healthy living and fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and death ...
, Lighthouse for the Blind and the
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...
. He was a founder of the Friends of Vail and the Vail Valley Citizen of the Year awards. He has also been a board member of the Vail Valley Foundation. He served on the board of the
International SeaKeepers Society
The International SeaKeepers Society is an international charitable organization founded in 1998. The group was started by yacht owners with an initial focus on developing and utilizing instrumentation on yachts to monitor marine conditions in t ...
, an organization of yacht owners that collect scientific data using their boats and crew and then broadcast the data by satellite to universities and governments around the world.
He has served as chairman of the Dr. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Family Foundation since 1977. It has supported hundreds of local and international educational, cultural, sporting and health care organizations around the world with millions of dollars in financial aid and grants. In 1987 the Foundation was the founding benefactor of the Koala and Asian River Otter projects at
Miami MetroZoo
The Miami-Dade Zoological Park and Gardens, also known as Zoo Miami, is a zoo, zoological park and garden near Miami and is the largest zoo in Florida. Originally established in 1948 at Crandon Park in Key Biscayne, Zoo Miami relocated in 1980 as M ...
. It funded the building of the public radio station in
Vail, Colorado
Vail is a home rule municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,835 in 2020. Home to Vail Ski Resort, the largest ski mountain in Colorado, the town is known for its hotels, dining, and for the num ...
and educational TV repeaters in the Vail Valley. The Wertheim Foundation was the first to fund a five-year
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
contract for ''
National Geographic
''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
'' and ten other science and cultural programs for
WPBT
WPBT (channel 2), is a PBS member television station in Miami, Florida, United States. It serves as the flagship station of South Florida PBS, which also owns Boynton Beach-licensed fellow PBS member WXEL-TV (channel 42, serving the West Palm B ...
Miami Public Television.
Awards and recognition
In April 2011, Wertheim was inducted into the
Horatio Alger Association
The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans is a nonprofit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia, that was founded in 1947 to honor the achievements of outstanding Americans who have succeeded in spite of adversity and to emphas ...
in recognition of his personal and professional successes despite his humble and challenging beginnings.
The
La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology
La Jolla Institute for Immunology is a non-profit research organization located in La Jolla, California. It is located in UC San Diego’s Research Park. The institute researches immunology and immune system diseases. The institute employs 220 M.D ...
elected Wertheim to serve as a director and research advisor in July 2013.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wertheim, Herbert
Living people
20th-century American inventors
American health care businesspeople
Eastern Florida State College people
1939 births
American people of German-Jewish descent
Jewish American philanthropists
Giving Pledgers
21st-century philanthropists
American billionaires
21st-century American Jews