William Spoelhof

William Spoelhof (December 8, 1909 – December 3, 2008) was the President of Calvin College, and President Emeritus of the Grand Rapids, Michigan school.

Spoelhof was a native of Paterson, New Jersey, and graduated from Calvin College in 1931. He received a master's degree from the University of Michigan 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 protest movements on the Calvin campus.

In 1935 Spoelhof married Angeline Nydam and they had three children. The asteroid 129099 Spoelhof is named in his honour.

Spoelhof died on December 3, 2008, just five days shy of his 99th birthday.

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 by decree of Queen Wilhelmina.

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