John Hall was born April 16, 1922 in Natick, Massachusetts. In 1942-1943 he attended the United States Merchant Marine Academy and graduated with a third mate's license and a commission as ensign in the United States Naval Reserve. He was on active duty with the Navy from April 1944 to November 1945. He returned to the Merchant Marine as a second mate before leaving to attend Goddard College in 1947. He received the B.A. degree from Goddard in 1950. In 1959 Hall received the Ed. M degree from Harvard University, and in 1970 he was a fellow at the Institute for Change in Higher Education at the Claremont, California Graduate School.
His employment record shows that he was organizational director for the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation in 1950-1951. He returned to active duty in the Navy as a lieutenant in 1951-1953, and then began a long association with Goddard College in various capacities as faculty member and administrator in 1953. In 1971 he was appointed dean of student services at Empire State College in Saratoga Springs, New York. Hall was invited back to Goddard College to serve as interim president in September 1976 and was given a full contract in 1977. He resigned the position in November 1980.
From the description of John Hall, Goddard College papers, 1971-1981. (Vermont Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 34774321
