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Under Dr. and Mrs. Eichberger’s leadership and 35-year tenure, St. George’s came of age and left its mark in the New Orleans community. Throughout the years, Dr. and Mrs. Eichberger formed a team as the school’s beloved head family, always cheerleaders and champions for St. George’s.
Dr. Robert "Rob" Eichberger assumed duties as headmaster of St. George’s following a nationwide search in 1983. He was a 15-year veteran in elementary education and former head of Luther Memorial School in Richmond, Va. He held a master’s degree in educational administration and was still completing requirements for a doctorate in education from the University of Virginia.
“Rob was a bright, young, enthusiastic educator ready to head his own school,” recalls Dr. Stephen Hales, then Chair of the Board of Trustees.
In a brochure printed shortly after his arrival, Dr. Eichberger presented his plan for St. George’s. Along with much-needed improvements to the facility, strengthening the school’s finances and increasing faculty compensation, his vision focused on the way St. George’s would educate the whole child. “We want to fully develop, not merely educate, each student. We want the whole child to grow in mind, body and spirit; academically, intellectually, physically, emotionally and spiritually.”
By 1985, Dr. Eichberger had completed the daunting task of earning accreditation from ISAS (Independent Schools Association of the Southwest).
Another item on Dr. Eichberger’s short list was to purchase a central air-conditioning system for the two historic buildings St. George’s then occupied, Porteous Hall and the adjacent two-story wooden school house. To help complete the task, the parent body hosted the school’s very first gala, Kool it for the Kids, which later became known as the annual Parents Group Soirée. It took three successful galas to raise the necessary funds. Under his leadership, St. George’s would eventually incorporate an additional seven adjacent properties into the campus, increasing the school’s footprint five times over while also revitalizing the neighborhood. A 2009 Times-Picayune article applauded Dr. Eichberger as “a cheerleader for preserving historic buildings,” adding that “Eichberger can tick off a list of historic buildings – many of them part of the original municipal framework of Jefferson City before it was annexed by New Orleans – that have been reclaimed, retrofitted and folded into the Uptown campus . . . The school’s neighbors seem to appreciate the way it has moved into its future while respecting the past.”
In 2005, following the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina, St. George’s was one of the very first schools to reopen. At Dr. Eichberger’s request, the school welcomed 50 plus families, many of them children of first responders, who had returned to New Orleans but were desperately in need of schooling for their children.
St. George’s gained a reputation over the years for its unique ability to provide what Dr. Eichberger described in 1983 as “an education that is tailored to meet the needs of each individual child.” Also that first year, he stated that “educating the whole child” would be the school’s foremost goal in education, although “whole child education” did not become a buzzword for decades.
The ISAS visiting committee, upon completion of the 10-year review [in 2017], commended Dr. Eichberger in its final report. “While it is unusual to single out any one person, the visiting committee feels that the service of Dr. Rob Eichberger to this community for the past 34 years is worthy of extraordinary commendation. All of the above citations are evidence of his leadership, grace and devotion to the school. The obvious respect, admiration and love professed by everyone in the St.George’s community for Dr. Eichberger is testimony to a man who embodies the values of St. George’s: perseverance, integrity, compassion and respect.”
Excerpted from Accolade Magazine, 2018
