Published on August 3, 2026

Bill and Roberta Hollada began their time at Lake Land College the same way they did everything else: together. They spent time at Southern Illinois University together, began teaching careers together and spent six years working in the same high schools together. So, in 1968, when Bill was offered an interview with the brand-new Lake Land College, he and Roberta made the drive to Mattoon together. Roberta only expected to wait in the car with their young daughter during the interview, but at some point, Bill must have mentioned that another highly qualified teacher was sitting just outside.

“A man named Dale Roberts came out and tapped on my window and said, ‘You better come in, too,’” Roberta recalled with a laugh. “I went in dressed for vacation and had my daughter with me, and they gave me a job on the spot.”

So marked an unusual beginning to two decorated careers. Bill began teaching speech, communication and journalism at Lake Land while Roberta became the College’s first-ever instructor for home economics and early childhood development. Together, they would help lay a foundation of academic excellence that has now spanned 60 years.

When Bill and Roberta first started, however, the College didn’t even have a campus. Classrooms and offices were instead located in 16 buildings spread across Mattoon. Roberta recalls holding classes in a small church building and having to project her voice over the teacher next door to make her lessons heard. But Bill and Roberta hardly noticed the hassle, because they both knew they had found a home with Lake Land.

“It was heaven on earth,” Roberta said. “We thought we were just privileged to be here.”

As the years passed, a campus was officially built and the College quickly grew, and Bill and Roberta were there to help shape the unfolding story of Lake Land. Bill became the first instructor in the radio broadcasting program, and Roberta built the College’s Child Care program from the ground up, developing curriculum and teaching 10 core classes. Her greatest impact on the program, however, was her role in establishing an on-campus daycare for students and staff, which served as a childcare lab for her own students.

“Before the lab, I had to send my students all over for field training, sometimes as far as Chicago or St. Louis,” Roberta explained. “The childcare lab was wonderful for our students.”

It was this mindset, one centered on student needs and success, that guided both Bill and Roberta throughout their careers. Bill was a one-of-a-kind instructor with a deep love for what he taught, known for constructive feedback and sincere mentorship. Roberta, meanwhile, lived by a philosophy that true learning was caught as much as taught. She prioritized opportunities for discovery and practical experience, and she strived to build student confidence through a positive learning environment.

“I always had a full classroom and a good relationship with my students. When I retired, students from every class I taught came to my party,” Roberta said. “It made me happy to see them go on and have success. I wasn’t just their teacher, I was their friend, too.”

Bill retired in 1986, and Roberta followed in 1994, marking the end of their shared careers. Their adventures together, however, would continue well beyond the walls of Lake Land. Throughout their marriage, Bill and Roberta were also avid travelers, having visited all 50 states, all the Canadian provinces and roughly 20 additional countries. They shared laughs and made memories with every destination, but the road always led them back home together in Mattoon.

“Nothing ever happened without Bill being there,” Roberta said with a laugh. “But Mattoon was our feel-good place. When Bill retired, people would ask him where he wanted to settle down, and he’d always say, ‘Is there a better place than Mattoon?’”

In 2024, Bill passed away at 95 years old, after nearly 67 years of marriage and adventure with Roberta. Today, she carries those memories forward, and she still looks at Lake Land College, the place where so many of these memories were made, with the same affection she felt when she arrived in 1968. It’s hard for her to imagine that 60 years of Lake Land history have already come and gone, but she trusts that the best days are still to come.

“I always say live life to the fullest, so you never look back wishing you had done this or that, but I honestly don’t know where the time went,” Roberta said. “Teaching still feels like yesterday. Whenever I’m back on campus, I think it’s about time to head to class.”