Ken Starr, the former independent counsel in the former President Clinton administration Whitewater investigation who later became president and chancellor of Baylor University, died Sept. 13 at age 76.
Starr, former U.S. Solicitor General and a U.S. circuit court judge, died at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in Houston due to complications from surgery, a statement from his family said.
Starr was elected president of Baylor University in February 2010, and he concurrently held the title of university chancellor beginning in November 2013.
Baylor’s board of regents removed Starr as president in May 2016, citing the university’s “fundamental failure” to handle sexual violence complaints appropriately under his leadership. He soon resigned as chancellor and later stepped down as a professor at Baylor Law School.
However, for six years, Starr oversaw significant expansion at Baylor, including construction of McLane Stadium, the Hart Track and Field Stadium, the Paul Foster Campus for Business and Innovation and Elliston Chapel, along with renovation of three residence halls.
He also led in fundraising for the university, beginning with his first major project – completing ahead of schedule the $100 million President’s Scholarship Initiative.
During Starr’s time as president, Baylor also took significant steps toward becoming a top-tier research university, expanding the Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative and establishing the Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences.
Praised for public service and scholarship
“Judge Starr had a profound impact on Baylor University, leading a collaborative visioning process to develop the Pro Futuris strategic vision in 2012 that placed Baylor on the path to where we are today as a Christian Research 1 institution,” President Linda Livingstone said.
“Judge Starr was a dedicated public servant and ardent supporter of religious freedom that allows faith-based institutions such as Baylor to flourish,” she said.
(EDITOR’S NOTE – Ken Camp is the managing editor of the Baptist Standard.)
