Richard Koubek: Meet Michigan Tech's 10th President

Richard J. Koubek is Michigan Technological University’s 10th president, beginning that role on July 1, 2018. He came to Tech from Louisiana State University where he most recently served as the executive vice president and provost.

Born outside Chicago in Berwyn, Illinois, Koubek holds bachelor’s degrees in biblical literature, with a minor in chemistry, from Oral Roberts University, and in psychology from Northeastern Illinois University. He received his master’s degree and PhD in industrial engineering from Purdue University. Koubek and his wife Valerie have three grown children and a German Shepherd.

St. Albert the Great parishioner Sarah Williams sat down with Koubek to discuss life at Tech, living in the Keweenaw, and the early days of his presidency.

What have you enjoyed so far about Tech?
I’ve really enjoyed meeting and interacting with the students. They are awesome. I knew we had good students but we have really great students. I now know why we have 370 employers attending Career Fair to hire our students. They are the future leaders. We have crazy smart students with a lot of grit. It’s been great to see how our location gives us a few very unique advantages like fresh water lake research and forestry research. We are shaped by where we exist as a university. It has been a delightful awakening for me to see how all of these pieces fit together. As an institution we have a sense of humility that is refreshing. There is a quiet greatness that exists at Tech.

The area is stunning. And there is such a community in the Keweenaw Peninsula. In the end it’s about the people and the sense of pride they have in the community. They care. That’s something you want to be a part of and associated with.

How do you see Tech becoming a leader in the Fourth Industrial Revolution?
There are few institutions that have the ability to do what Tech can do and hence we bear a responsibility. We are a technological university. That’s our middle name but it’s embedded in everything, permeates everything. We need to understand the technology, the implications and how this will succeed in the future. We have a unique situation because of where we are situated. We are a tight-knit community embedded in an area of natural beauty. We can explore the technological frontier. We do that because we have to; it’s our mission and responsibility to do so.

Why are alumni important to Michigan Tech?
The value system at Michigan Tech is carried in the alumni. The actualization of what we aspire to be as a university is evidenced t in the acts of our alumni. We are a reflection of what they achieve, and they are the articulation of the vision and mission of this University. We take great pride in all their achievements and how they choose to live their lives with humility and hard work. The alumni are Michigan Tech. Their knowledge and expertise can help us stay contemporary and current.

Koubek says when he was deciding his career path, he wanted to work with people, do something positive, and contribute to society. That led him to study and earn a degree in biblical literature, leading him to study at a seminary for a year. During that process, he learned he was better suited to deal with the quantitative process more and pursued psychology, eventually discovering industrial engineering, teaching, and administrative work in higher education.

“It all fits,” he says. “I continue to work in a technological-oriented career working with and helping people.”