AMHERST – Robert “Bob” Wellman, 83, died peacefully at his home on May 8, 2016 with his family by his side.

 Born January 18, 1933 in Lima, Ohio, he was the son of the late Howard and Mary (Ireland) Wellman.  He grew up in Lima and Brooklyn, Ohio with his beloved grandmother Grace always by his side.  He graduated valedictorian from Brooklyn High School and received a scholarship to Dartmouth College where he began his great adventure.

At Dartmouth Bob’s goal was to be a zookeeper and in 1954, he earned a bachelor’s degree in Zoology.  Drafted into the Army during the Korean War he developed his lifelong passion for philosophy and learning reading Plato, Aristotle, Socrates and Dewey.  This inspired him to pursue an alternative road. He went to London, earned a Master’s Degree in Science Teaching, History of Science at the University of London and fell in love with England.  He also fell in love with his beloved wife Avril.  Returning to the USA with baby on board he became serious about a career and earned his Ph.D. in “Philosophy of Education and History of Science” from Ohio State University in 1962.  Shortly thereafter he became a professor at the University of Massachusetts and brought his young family to Amherst. 

During his tenure at UMass, Bob held numerous academic and administrative positions including University Ombudsman, Professor and Director of Educational Philosophy, Secretary of the Faculty Senate, where he wrote the Wellman Document defining University governance, and Director of the Adult and Higher Educational Leadership Program.  He was a visiting professor at the Universities of Washington, Illinois and Wisconsin, and most notably he received a Fulbright to the University of Tehran, Iran where he fell in love with the culture and made many dear lifelong friends. 

Bob retired Professor Emeritus from UMass in 1994, but he was far from done.  He turned his energies and passion for teaching and learning towards K-12 education and worked tirelessly with many teachers in Chicopee and other schools in Western Massachusetts through Framingham State College. 

Bob was a staple in the Amherst Community serving as a town meeting member, a Rao’s coffee regular and the whistler at Atkins.  Sunday mornings won’t be the same for his dear friends. 

Bob is survived by the love of his life Avril, daughter Beth and her husband Mark, son Alex and wife Jen, and the pride of his life, his three grandchildren, Michelle, Sam and Vic.

A memorial Service celebrating his life will be held 3:00pm, Sunday, July 10, at the South Congregational Church in South Amherst.

In lieu of flowers, donations made be made in Bob’s name to a charity of your choice.