Born and raised in New York, Neill Kramer was the first in his family to attend college. He attended an alternative college, Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington in 1978, after studying accounting, Chinese philosophy, economics and abnormal psychology at a college in New Jersey. He then completed a six-month whirlwind tour of Europe, Israel, Kenya and Tanzania with money that he made from teaching tennis.

As part of his studies at Evergreen, Neill produced a documentary video about the unfolding of a small museum in the San Juan Islands of Washington called The Whale Museum. He wrote a grant and lived on the island, recording the day-to-day activities of building the museum's exhibits. It was his first exposure to grassroots museum activism.

Neill observed almost 400 volunteers donating their time, effort, and money to help understand and preserve the local Orca population. It was an inspirational lesson.

After receiving his BA from Evergreen and a Master's in Education from the University of Oregon, Neill worked for several years in the non-profit sector, and then tried his hand at a variety of entrepreneurial ventures. With two friends, Neill co-founded Cyberpuppy Software in 1992, dedicated to producing creativity software for children.

Having sold the company in 1994, Neill became involved with several internet startups before becoming a stay-at-home Dad. His interest in hippie culture dates from his pre-college and college days in Oregon and Washington.