The Middlebury Campus

Issue date: 1/10/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Courtesy

Senator Robert T. Stafford '35, died in Montpelier on Dec. 23, 2006. The 93-year-old Vermonter was known as a champion for education and the environment during his four-decade-long career in politics, and will be fondly remembered by friends, family and colleagues.

Despite having graduated over a half-century ago, Stafford maintained a rich relationship with the College throughout his life and was honored with a named professorship for his public service. Stafford, who majored in political science, met his wife Helen at Middlebury during the 1934-35 school years, when she was a first-year and he was a senior. Two of Stafford's children also attended the College, Madelyn Stafford Glase '63 and Susan Stafford Mohr '67.

According to Professor of Political Science and Secretary of the College Emeritus Eric Davis, Stafford said, "The courses he took [at Middlebury] opened him to a wider world, led him to pursue a law degree and to then get involved in public life after returning from naval service during World War II."

Davis, who attended Stafford's funeral Saturday, said, "Just about every present or former Vermont officeholder, regardless of party or of age, was present at the ceremony, [which] shows the respect and affection which Bob Stafford had throughout the Vermont political community."

Stafford was a staunch supporter of the federal financial aid program, and after he retired, the Senate named the low-interest Stafford Loan after him to honor his dedication to federal financial aid program. Stafford also provided additional federal resources for cultural programs such as the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. He used his prominence in the Senate to fight against educational cutbacks and defend strong education policies.

Stafford's impact on his second specialization, the environment, was no less significant. According to Stafford Professor of Public Policy, Political Science and Environmental Studies Christopher Klyza, "Senator Stafford played a major role in guiding the legislative process to its conclusion for the Superfund law in 1980." Although President Ronald Reagan was elected while the House and Senate were attempting to reconcile differences in their bills, and was "skeptical of further regulation such as the Superfund law," according to Klyza, "Stafford helped forge the compromise that led to the law."

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