William Spoelhof (December 8, 1909 – December 3, 2008) was the

President of Calvin College The President of Calvin University is the chief executive officer of the school. The office is not as old as Calvin University (Michigan), Calvin University, which had no need for such a position when it was founded in 1876. When the ''Theological ...

, and

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Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

of the

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

school.

Biography

Spoelhof was a native of

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Calvin College Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reformed (Calvinist) ...

in 1931. He received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1937. After completing his doctoral studies, he returned to Calvin to teach history and political science in 1946. In 1956, after becoming president of the college, Spoelhof was responsible for the initiation of the school's move to its current Knollcrest campus. The move was not completed until 1973. Toward the end of the 1960s Spoelhof also had to deal with the impact of nationwide

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementar ...

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...

movements on the Calvin campus. In 1935 Spoelhof married Angeline Nydam and they had three children. The

asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere. ...

129099 Spoelhof is named in his honour. Spoelhof died on December 3, 2008, just five days shy of his 99th birthday.

Military service

On June 17, 1943, Spoelhof applied for a commission or warrant officer's rank in the US Naval Reserve and was accepted, becoming a Lieutenant, Junior Grade. He joined the OSS and served as an intelligence analyst, specifically focusing upon the liberation of the Netherlands. His mission of gathering intelligence in the Netherlands was terminated on October 10, 1945, and he was released from active duty on November 9, 1945. On January 31, 1946, he was awarded the Bronze star for his actions during the liberation of the Netherlands. On February 23, 1946, he was invested as a Knight of the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

by decree of Queen Wilhelmina.Appointment of Lieutenant William Spoelhof to be a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau, February 23, 1946, William Spoelhof Papers, Heritage Hall Archives, Hekman Library, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan

References

Bibliography

*Cassidy, William L., ed. History of the Schools and Training Branch, Office of Strategic Services. San Francisco: Kingfisher Press, 1983. *Roosevelt, Kermit. War Report of the OSS (Office of Strategic Services). New York: Walker, 1976. *0Katz, Barry M. Foreign Intelligence: Research and Analysis in the Office of Strategic Services, 1942-45. Cambridge and London: Harvard Press, 1989. *OSS Assessment Staff. Assessment of Men; Selection of Personnel for the Office of Strategic Services. New York: Rinehart and Company, 1948. *Dejong, Gerald F. The Dutch in America, 1609-1974. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1975. *Lucas, Henry S. Netherlanders in America: Dutch Immigration to the United States and Canada, 1789-1950. Grand Rapids:

William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company is a religious publishing house based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1911 by Dutch American William B. Eerdmans (November 4, 1882 – April 1966) and still independently owned with William's daught ...

, 1989. * * * * * *

External links

William Spoelhof
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spoelhof, William 1909 births 2008 deaths American people of Dutch descent Calvin University faculty Calvin University alumni University of Michigan alumni People from Paterson, New Jersey Presidents of Calvin University American members of the Christian Reformed Church in North America 20th-century American academics