 After leaving Geauga , Garfield worked for a year at various jobs , including teaching . Finding that some New Englanders worked their way through college , Garfield determined to do the same , and first sought a school that could prepare him for the entrance examinations . From 1851 to 1854 , he attended the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute ( later named Hiram College ) in Hiram , Ohio , a school run by the Disciples . While there , he was most interested in the study of Greek and Latin , but was inclined to learn about and discuss any new thing he encountered . Securing a position on entry as janitor , he was hired to teach while still a student . Lucretia Rudolph had also enrolled at the Institute , and Garfield wooed her while teaching her Greek . He developed a regular preaching circuit at neighboring churches , in some cases earning a gold dollar per service . By 1854 , Garfield had learned all the Institute could teach him and was a full @-@ time teacher . Garfield then enrolled at Williams College in Williamstown , Massachusetts , as a third @-@ year student , given credit for two year 's study at the Institute after passing a cursory examination . Garfield was impressed with the college president , Mark Hopkins , who had responded warmly to Garfield 's letter inquiring about admission . He said of Hopkins , " The ideal college is Mark Hopkins on one end of a log with a student on the other . " Hopkins later stated about Garfield in his student days , " There was a large general capacity applicable to any subject . There was no pretense of genius , or alternation of spasmodic effort , but a satisfactory accomplishment in all directions . " After his first term , Garfield was hired to teach penmanship to the students of nearby Pownal , Vermont , a post whose previous incumbent was Chester A. Arthur . 
