From late nights at The Spectator to roles in both mainstage and independent student theater productions to writing his public policy thesis on bail reform, Will Kaback ’20 relished the opportunity to sample a breadth of experiences on College Hill. He was inspired by the promise of experimentation and exploration that Hamilton offers.
“I think my Hamilton experience was, by design, very spread out,” Kaback said. “I had my foot in a lot of different doors, which is what drew me to Hamilton. And that has translated into what I've done in my career since I graduated, and has been a great boon to me.”
Will draws on his range of creative and intellectual pursuits in his current role as a senior editor at Tangle News. Tangle is an independent news startup that focuses on bringing people of different political backgrounds and beliefs together to discuss divisive topics in a constructive way, a mission that echoes Hamilton’s Common Ground programming.
Tangle produces a newsletter every weekday centered around one timely topic and including seven perspectives on that topic from across the political spectrum. While Will and his colleagues may not possess subject matter expertise on every issue, he feels that they are nonetheless able to use their educational backgrounds to bring Tangle’s mission to life.
“What we do bring is this curious and intellectually rigorous spirit that you get from a liberal arts education, where we're able to look critically, break down arguments, identify weaknesses, identify strengths, and then kind of give a pathway for others to think about these issues without making ourselves authoritative,” Kaback said. “So that, to me, is Hamilton.”
This ethos of energetic inquiry that Will has cultivated infuses every aspect of his life, personally as well as professionally.
“I’ve continued to be kind of curious and open to those new experiences, and trying to continually expand and try out things that I might be interested in but don't have previous experience with, or I've only dipped my toe in,” Kaback said. “And that certainly stems from the doors that were open to me at Hamilton.”
Posted October 7, 2025
