Rita Bornstein

Rita Bornstein, 13th president of Rollins College, died January 9 at home in Winter Park, Florida, in the care of her family. She had just celebrated her 88th birthday.

A native of New York City and a longtime Florida resident, Bornstein earned her B.A. and M.A. degrees in English literature from Florida Atlantic University and was awarded the Ph.D. in educational leadership from the University of Miami. She received honorary doctoral degrees from Florida Atlantic University, the University of Central Florida, and Rollins College.

Early interests included modern dance, and she studied with legends Martha Graham and Katherine Dunham, and with the Lester Horton Dance Theater, occasionally choreographing and performing. Dance, music, art, and literature remained among her greatest joys throughout her life.

Bornstein's career included high school teaching and administration in Dade County (FL) and directing the U.S. Office of Education Technical Assistance Center at the University of Miami to assist schools and colleges to implement Title IX and gender equity in the Southeast. In 1981, she joined the UM development team, rising to the vice presidency and leading one of the largest and most successful fundraising campaigns in the history of American higher education at the time.

In 1990, she became president of Rollins College, the first woman to hold the office. Under Bornstein's leadership, average SAT scores for entering students rose more than 65 points and Rollins' place in U.S. News & World Report's annual rankings of "America's Best Colleges" climbed from No. 6 regional university in the South to No. 1 in 2004. During her tenure, Bornstein supported innovative initiatives such as the study of sustainable development and the signature Rollins College Conference for first-year students. The College's commitment to building strong communities was enhanced through programs of intellectual discourse, civic engagement, international study, and service learning.

Bornstein also oversaw Rollins' most ambitious fundraising effort to that date, securing $160.2 million and providing support for academic programs, scholarships, faculty, facilities, and the first endowment of a college presidency in the nation. During her tenure, the College's endowment more than quintupled and the College established 16 new endowed chairs and added, expanded, or renovated 25 facilities.

Bornstein was an expert on leadership, governance, and fundraising in the nonprofit sector, and the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters and four books, including Legitimacy in the Academic Presidency: From Entrance to Exit (2003), considered a "must-read" for new college presidents. Among her favorite topics for audiences and discussion were "Promoting Civil Discourse on Campus," "Leadership, Money, and Mischief," and "The College President as Public Intellectual."

On the conclusion of her Rollins presidency in 2004, the Rollins faculty dedicated a collection of essays, titled Fiat Lux: Teaching in Paradise, to Bornstein, and the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce named her Citizen of the Decade. She continued as a director of Tupperware Corporation, having also previously served as a director of Barnett Banks, Inc., and NationsBank Corporation. As George D. and Harriet W. Cornell Professor of Philanthropy and Leadership Development at Rollins, she remained active nationally and in the Winter Park/Orlando community, where she served on the boards of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Winter Park Health Foundation, and Parkinson Association of Central Florida. Her continuing involvement earned her recognition as one of Winter Park Magazine's 2017 "Influentials," which called her "Rollins' Wonder Woman."

Rita Bornstein is survived by her children, Rachel Setear and Mark Bornstein; her beloved granddaughters, Ariel and Hayley Setear; her stepson and daughter-in-law, Per Bloland and Anne Roma, and their children, Signe and Ezio; and her brother, Arnold Kropf, and his wife, Dee.

A celebration of her life will be held Monday, January 29, at 2 p.m. in Rollins' Knowles Memorial Chapel on the Rollins College campus. It will also be live-streamed for those who cannot attend. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Bornstein's honor be made to
Rollins College (P.O. Box 850001, Dept. #9921, Orlando, FL 32886-4168),
the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Florida (851 N. Maitland Avenue, Maitland, FL 32751), or the
Parkinson Association of Central Florida (P.O. Box 3337, Winter Park, FL 32790-3337).