Hobart and William Smith Colleges

ROGER FARRAND '49, P'78

Associate Professor Emeritus of English
1958-1987

Roger Farrand '49, P'78, associate professor emeritus of English, taught at the Colleges from 1958 until his retirement in 1987. After he graduated from high school, Farrand enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1943 and served in Europe during World War II. Having enrolled at the Colleges on the G.I. Bill, Farrand was involved with the Herald and Little Theatre. He graduated with a B.A. in English in 1949 and later attended Columbia University. He returned to Geneva in 1958 after marrying his wife, the late Asta Farrand '76, with whom he has two children, Matthew C. Farrand '78 and Johanna Farrand. An active participant in local theater as well as on campus, Farrand taught courses in Rhetoric and Composition, Literary Consciousness, Oral Interpretation of Literature, cinema and theatre and directed productions of Greek classics, Shakespeare and contemporary musicals. In his retirement, Farrand remained a deeply engaged educator, serving as coordinator for the Finger Lakes region of Elderhostel, a network of more than 1,200 organizations offering low-cost, short-term residential academic programs for adults age 60 or older.

In nominating Farrand for the Distinguished Faculty Award, former students recalled his passion as an educator who "taught generations of us how to communicate effectively with the written and spoken word as well as in the theatre," an inspiring presence in the classroom who "made the love of learning the purpose of a college education."