Kenneth Starr, best known as the head of the controversial investigation into Bill Clinton’s various scandals, is expected to be named president of Baylor University.
Ken Starr, the constitutional lawyer who conducted the independent counsel investigation that led to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton, is expected to be named this week as president of Baylor University in Waco, Texas, according to a source with knowledge of the decision.
Since 2004, Starr has served as dean of Pepperdine Law School in Malibu, Calif. He first accepted that job back in 1996 but later backed away after critics said his work at the school, which is funded largely by conservative donors, could have conflicted with his work as a special prosecutor.
Rumors of Starr’s move to Baylor were reported first on the Texas Tribune blog Sunday. KWTX-TV and the Waco Tribune-Herald followed later with sources saying the appointment was certain.
This strikes me as an odd choice, not just because of the polarizing nature of the Clinton impeachment but because Starr’s experience seems a poor fit. His only academic leadership experience is running a small (enrollment: 639) law school. Baylor is a mid-sized university (enrollment: 13,886) with a major intercollegiate athletic program (Big 12). If nothing else, he’s prepared to deal with the media onslaught he’ll face.
