Charles (Charlie) Houton, a valued lecturer in the English Department for nearly fifteen years and a member of the UVM community for almost twenty-five years, died Friday, November 6, at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. He completed his B.A. in English at UVM in 1994 and then pursued his M.A in English here, winning the Department's highest honor for graduate students, the Tupper Award, in 1996. His M.A. thesis examined the poetry and plays of William Butler Yeats. He earned a second M.A. in Greek and Latin at UVM, graduating in 2002 with a thesis on Giraldus Cambrensis. He taught briefly in the Classics Department before settling in English. There he taught a range of courses, including World Literature, Expository Writing, Written Expression, British Literature, and an introduction to fiction, poetry, and drama called "Types of Literature.” Charlie played an important role in the Department by offering introductory courses that often inspired students to become English majors.

He was much loved and appreciated by students and colleagues alike. English Department faculty remember him as "a wonderful colleague and friend” who "served his students with kindness, generosity, and heart.”  Another recalls, "What I most admired about Charlie was how he gave so much attention to responding to his students’ writing while also remaining engaged with the wider world—and eager to talk, with generosity and hope and belief in the value of struggle, about both.” Charlie's wealth of knowledge, dedication to teaching, and intellectual curiosity were remarkable, as were his good nature and sense of humor. As one English faculty member writes, "We've lost someone very special."

In spring 2014 he was diagnosed with leukemia and stopped teaching in order to seek treatment, which he received at the UVM Medical Center and in Boston. There will be a celebration of his life sometime in the spring or summer.