Wilfrid Gardiner Hamlin

I just read the news that Goddard College is closing its doors forever, and it feels like a blow to the memory of Wil. He was my facilitator in the early 1990s when I was still an immature student trying to discover what the limits were to my chosen independence. Wil was graceful and patient in his guidance, and his intelligence intimidated me profoundly-so much so that I feared taking more studies with him would shatter the fragile self esteem I was tacking together. I shouldn´t have feared....

As my advisor through my Master's in Education program, Wil's unfailing support and enthusiasm powered me through a very challenging time in my life --- raising an infant alone while working 60 hours a week and participating in a graduate program. His enthusiasm was grounded in a great deal of knowledge, wisdom, and solid convictions, which made it worth even more. I have thought of him frequently since then, and I hope his family knows how much light he brought to others.

Will Hamlin was my academic advisor for many years at Goddard, and I took his classes each semester. Every Friday, I went to his office and we had long, passionate conversations about literature. Even after I graduated, I would still occasionally drive to Vermont and he would recognize me by my shadow through the door! He was a major influence on my thinking -- looking back on where my life went, I realized how much I was modeling myself after him and his spirit: that of humanism, curiosity,...

Wil was an enormous influence on me, and I learned quite a lot of what I know about progressive education from serving with him on the small faculty subcommittees in which we talked about our work with students. He was an amazing man; a model for the kind of intellect that I wanted to be, and for the kind of omnivorous learning that I tried to nurture in students.