Clarence R. Moll*

The son of a farmer, Clarence Moll grew up in rural Bucks County, Pennsylvania. His home was so remote that he had to walk two miles to a train station and then take a train to school.

A good student, Moll attended Temple University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in physics followed by a master's in education. He went on to earn a doctorate in statistical measurement and higher education administration from New York University.

Moll served as headmaster of Pennsylvania Military Preparatory School, and then became an associate professor of physics and electrical engineering at Pennsylvania Military College (PMC). He also taught radar technology to U.S. Navy personnel during World War II.

In 1959, after 16 years with PMC, Moll was appointed president. He successfully guided the urban campus through an expansion program that increased its size from 25 to 92 acres, and he eventually presided over the military school's transition to a private co-ed school called Widener College. By the time Moll retired, Widener had become a university with a law school and doctoral programs in education and nursing, as well as a large MBA enrollment.

Moll's advice to young people was to have a dream. "Keep your eyes and thoughts on the morrow," he said, "and be constantly striving to be at the cutting edge by adjusting your dream to change. Throughout life, the only constant I've known is change. Be ready to create change, accept it, and cope with it."

Moll said he always tried to give more than was expected. "You must put honor, integrity, and ethical values above personal gain," said Moll, adding that his induction into the Horatio Alger Association reinforced his belief that even those who experience privation in youth can, by maximizing their talents, achieve success and acclaim.