Emeritus faculty member Graham ‘Stan’ Frear dies
St. Olaf College Associate Professor Emeritus of English Graham “Stan” Frear ’47, who supervised and helped teach more than 2,000 English education majors during his 24 years on the Hill, died August 17.
Deeply interested in art, Frear first studied biology and then chose English as his profession. After teaching high school biology and English for 15 years, he earned his graduate degree from the University of Minnesota and joined the St. Olaf faculty in 1962.
In addition to English education, Frear taught rhetoric and American literature; offered the first course focused on African American literature; and founded St. Olaf’s Irish studies program. He also published two books of poetry.
Throughout his career, Frear was passionate about art — especially collage boxes, an art form he began pursuing in 1957. He sold many throughout the nation, earning a number of commissions for his work. Particularly popular was his work dealing with literary figures, such as boxes depicting the writing, life, and times of William Faulkner.
A memorial service for Frear will be held Wednesday, August 27, at 11 a.m. at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Northfield. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service.
Read Frear’s obituary.