Robert Walter Kustra (born March 21, 1943) is an American politician and academic administrator who served as the

Lieutenant Governor of Illinois The lieutenant governor of Illinois is the second highest executive of the State of Illinois. In Illinois, the lieutenant governor and governor run on a joint ticket and are directly elected by popular vote. Gubernatorial candidates select their ...

from 1991 to 1998, President of

Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Kentucky University (Eastern or EKU) is a public university in Richmond, Kentucky. It also maintains branch campuses in Corbin, Hazard, and Manchester and offers over 40 online undergraduate and graduate options. History Founding ...

from 1998 to 2001, and President of

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has b ...

from 2003 to 2018.

Education

Kustra received his Bachelor of Arts in political science from

Benedictine College Benedictine College is a private Benedictine liberal arts college in Atchison, Kansas, United States. It was established in 1971 by the merger of St. Benedict's College (founded 1858) for men and Mount St. Scholastica College (founded 1923) for ...

Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city in, and the county seat of, Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator ...

, his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in Public Administration from

Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois, United States. Chartered in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. SIU enrolls students from all 50 sta ...

, and his PhD in political science from the

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

Career

Politics

Kustra served in both houses of the

Illinois General Assembly The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in ...

. He served in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

, representing the 4th district, from January 14, 1981, to January 12, 1983, when he began representing the 28th district in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, which he did until he resigned to become the

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

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 James Robert Edgar (born July 22, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 38th governor of Illinois from 1991 to 1999. A Moderate Republican (modern United States), moderate Republican Party (United States), Republican, he previously s ...

'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 the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

in 1996 to succeed

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...

but was defeated in the primary by Illinois Representative Al Salvi. Salvi's victory 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.

Academics

Kustra served as a member of the faculty at

University of Illinois Springfield The University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) is a public university in Springfield, Illinois, United States. The university was established by the Illinois General Assembly in 1969 as Sangamon State University with a focus on post-graduate edu ...

Loyola University of Chicago Loyola University Chicago (Loyola or LUC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic universities in the United States. Its namesa ...

, the

University of Illinois Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...

, and

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

. Kustra served as president of

from 1998 until 2001. From 2003 to 2018, he was president of

and is a member of the board of the

Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education is a nonpartisan, regional interstate higher education compact and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Boulder, Colorado. The WICHE region consists of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colo ...

. He also hosted the radio show ''Reader's Corner'' on

Boise State Public Radio Boise State Public Radio is a broadcast service of Boise State University, which operates four programming services on several radio stations throughout central and southern Idaho and northern Nevada. Stations and services KBSU in Boise, Idah ...

. He has also served in the following university organizations: * Midwestern Higher Education Commission (president) *

Illinois Board of Higher Education The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) is a state government agency that oversees higher education in the U.S. state of Illinois. The IBHE was created in 1961. Since 2012 the IBHE also permits and oversees business schools and other voca ...

(chairman) *

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

(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.Richert, K. "The Politics of the Labrador Kustra Feud," Idaho Education News. August 22, 2017 retrieved from: https://www.idahoednews.org/kevins-blog/politics-labrador-kustra-feud/ Kustra retired from his position of President of Boise State in the summer of 2018, having announced his pending retirement in November 2017.

References

External links

1997–1998 Illinois Blue Book: Lt. Governor biography page 23

1981–1982 Illinois Blue Book: Illinois General Assembly District 4 representative biography page 76

1983–1984 Illinois Blue Book: Illinois General Assembly District 28 senate biography page 87
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kustra, Robert W. 1943 births Living people Lieutenant governors of Illinois Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives Republican Party Illinois state senators Presidents of Eastern Kentucky University People from Park Ridge, Illinois Politicians from St. Louis Benedictine College alumni Southern Illinois University Carbondale alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni 20th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly