Scholarship News

Annapolis, MA, United States (AHN) – A California graduate school instructor believed to have profited from fake military and academic credentials for a decade has been charged with mail fraud.

According to a criminal complaint, William Hillar has been offering workshops, accepting paid speaking engagements and conducting training for government agencies under fraudulent pretenses.

Hillar allegedly claimed for the past 10 years to be a retired colonel of the U.S. Army Special Forces who served in Asia, the Middle East and South America. His padded resume includes training in tactical counter-terrorism, explosive ordnance and psychological warfare.

He claimed to have a master’s degree in education, a doctorate in health education, and an honorary doctorate in intercultural relations.

The 66-year-old maintained a business called Bill Hillar Training as well as a website that outlined his alleged service record and university degrees. The Maryland resident taught a workshop at the Monterey Institute for International Studies from 2005 until he was removed by the school last year.

California-based Monterey Institute is a graduate school of Middlebury College that offers courses and workshops on areas such as international policy and sustainable development.

The school completed an investigation in November that found Hillar’s claims to be false. The institute said Hillar was not subjected to a pre-employment background check because he was an independent contractor who taught a one-credit workshop every semester.

The FBI says Hillar received a total of $32,500 from the school for 12 courses he taught.

Hillar has no service records with the Army and was never sent to any of the places he claimed to have been deployed. He served as an enlisted sailor for the Coast Guard reserves from 1962 through 1970. He attended the University of Oregon but has no post-graduate degree.

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