Commencement 2009 - Villanova University

William T. Garland, O.S.A. ’58
Trustee
It would be understandable for the
Rev. William T. Garland, O.S.A. ’58
A&S, to slow down after a 50-year
career. But after five decades teaching
and shepherding public and
parochial school districts throughout the
northeastern United States, turning away
from education just isn’t on his to-do list.
For nearly a decade, he has brought the
expertise gleaned from his experience to
Villanova’s board of trustees, on which he
serves with a blend of commitment, vocation
and talent.
“Teaching has always been a calling for
me,” says the priest, who goes by “Father
Bill.” “An educational ministry was possible
with the Augustinians because we
have a number of apostolates related to
teaching on the secondary- and highereducation
levels. I had always wanted to
be a teacher and was wonderfully pleased
to find out that with the Augustinians I
could answer a call both to the priesthood
as well as the teaching profession.”
That call took Father Bill after ordination
10 miles west, to Malvern, where he
taught at Malvern Prep for five years. The
Augustinians then sent him to Harvard for
a doctorate in educational administration.
After commencement, he stayed in Cambridge,
taking a job with the management
consulting firm Arthur D. Little, before
moving to Yonkers, New York, to direct
public special-education teacher training
programs. Then came teaching and administrative
posts in East Boston, and Cambridge
once again. He was named superintendent
of Catholic schools for the diocese
of Manchester, New Hampshire, followed
by a one year sabbatical in Leuven, Belgium,
and San Gimignano in Tuscany.
Upon his return to the United States, he
was named director of education for the
Fall River, Massachusetts, diocese. In 2000
he was elected to Villanova’s board, and
two years after that he was elected counselor
of the Augustinian Province of St.
Thomas of Villanova and a member of the
leadership team of the Province.
Over the course of his career, Father Bill
has drawn on his atypical early childhood as
a source of inspiration and perspective. He
was raised by deaf parents, his father having
lost his hearing to scarlet
fever, and his mother hers
to a swimming accident;
Father Bill’s ordination at
Merrimack College in
1962 was translated into
sign language.
“My parents were not
formally schooled themselves,
but they were certainly
educated in the fine
art of being good human
beings,” he says. They
were always sensitive to
the needs of other people,
always sensitive to improving
oneself through formal
processes and education.
I developed a love of reading
through them, and the
excitement of traveling
and doing different things.
They always brought with
them, and consequently to
me, a sense of wonderment
and surprise. Growing up
in that household had
some drawbacks, but it was
filled with love and affection.
I’m very grateful for the background
I had, though it was very different from
those of my classmates.”
As his remarkable career transitions
into its next phase, Father Bill looks forward
to the simple things: some traveling,
some reading (Robert Ludlum is a favorite),
some TV (C.S.I., Law & Order),
anticipating opportunities to serve at a
slower pace.
“At 73, I have no intention of turning
my face to the wall,” he says, “but I’m
looking forward to cutting down on professional
commitments and having the
time to do some reflection of my own.”
A first-hand witness to Villanova’s
immense evolution over the last halfcentury,
Fr. Bill acknowledges the campus’s
physical changes — many of which
occurred during the presidential tenure of
his classmate, the Rev. Edmund J. Dobbin,
O.S.A., STD ’58 A&S, president emeritus,
whom he praises for “his deep love
and commitment” to the University. At
the same time, he points out that under
current president Peter Donohue O.S.A.,
Ph.D. ’75 A&S, the University is enjoying
“a renaissance of spirit throughout the
campus as Fr. Peter continues to emphasize
and reinforce at Villanova its Catholic
roots and Augustinian core values of
veritas, unitas, and caritas.”
And, ever the educator, Fr. Bill offers a
lesson to fellow alumni who wonder in
what direction their alma mater will head
in the years to come.
“I would hope that in the future
Villanova University will continue to
draw its nourishment and strength from
its foundation in the Catholic faith and
traditions as well as from the presence and
influence of the Augustinian Order with
its rich educational heritage,” he says.
“Our future is not shackled to the past,
but the past is, rather, an invitation to
Villanova’s further growth as one of our
nation’s preeminent universities.”
—Thomas Durso
Summer 2009 27