Introduction
Robert Walter Kustra (born March 21, 1943) is a former Illinois Republican politician and former president of Boise State University. Kustra was born in St. Louis, Missouri.
Education
Kustra received his Bachelor of Arts in political science from Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, his master's degree in Public Administration from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and his PhD in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Political career
Kustra served in both houses of the Illinois General Assembly. He served in the House of Representatives, representing the 4th district, from January 14, 1981 to January 12, 1983, when he began representing the 28th district in the Senate, which he did until he resigned to become the Lieutenant Governor in 1991. While in the Senate, he served as Assistant Minority Leader. He was voted Best Freshman Legislator during his first year in each house.
He was elected 43rd Lieutenant Governor of Illinois as Jim Edgar's running-mate, and served from January 14, 1991 to July 1, 1998, when he resigned to become president of Eastern Kentucky University.
He sought the Republican nomination for United States Senate in 1996 to succeed Paul Simon but was defeated in the primary by Illinois Representative Al Salvi.
The defeat to Al Salvi was considered a major political upset. Kustra before the primary was considered a heavy favorite to defeat Salvi, a relatively unknown conservative state representative, and Chicago area attorney.
Academia
Kustra served as a member of the faculty at University of Illinois at Springfield, Loyola University of Chicago, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and Northwestern University. Kustra served as president of Eastern Kentucky University from 1998 until 2001. From 2003 to 2018, he was president of Boise State University and is a member of the board of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. He also hosted the radio show Reader's Corner on Boise State Public Radio.
He has also served in the following university organizations:
- Midwestern Higher Education Commission (president)
- Illinois Board of Higher Education (chairman)
- NCAA Division I (executive committee and board of directors)
- Presidential Task Force on the Future of Intercollegiate Athletics
While Boise State University saw enormous growth during Kustra's tenure there, his leadership was not without criticism.Congressman Raúl Labrador in August, 2017 suggested that it might be time for Kustra to leave Boise State University. Kustra and Labrador have been critical of each other.
Dr. Kustra retired from his position of President of Boise State in the summer of 2018, having announced his pending retirement in November 2017.