Fred S. Keller

Fred Simmons Keller (January 2, 1899 – February 2, 1996) was an American psychologist and a pioneer in experimental psychology. He taught at Columbia University for 26 years and gave his name to the Keller Plan, also known as Personalized System of Instruction, an individually paced, mastery-oriented teaching method that has had a significant impact on college-level science education system. He died at home, age 97, on February 2, 1996, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Keller was born on January 2, 1899, on a farm near Rural Grove, New York, in Montgomery County. He was the only child to Vrooming Barney Keller and Minnie Vanderveer Simmons. Due to instability in his childhood, he left school at an early age to pursue employment as a Western Union telegrapher in Saranac Lake, New York. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1918 during World War I and served in Camp Jackson, South Carolina, in addition to active duty overseas in France and Germany. While in France, he served in battle five times, and in Germany he participated in the Army of Occupation. Keller exited the military ranking as a sergeant in August 1919. Keller attended Goddard Seminary, in which he received athletic scholarship in 1919.