Robert Porter Foster (May 24, 1917 – March 10, 2008) was president of

Northwest Missouri State University Northwest Missouri State University is a public university in Maryville, Missouri. It has an enrollment of about 8,505 students. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, its campus is based on the design for Forest Park at the 1904 St. Louis Worl ...

from 1964 to 1977. During his tenure Northwest's enrollment increased from 500 to 6,500.

Early life

Foster was born in

Warrensburg, Missouri Warrensburg is a city in and the county seat of Johnson County, Missouri, United States. The population was 20,313 at the 2020 census. The Warrensburg Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Johnson County. The city is a college town as it is ...

and earned a BA from

Central Missouri State University The University of Central Missouri (UCM) is a public university in Warrensburg, Missouri. In 2019, enrollment was 11,229 students from 49 states and 59 countries on its 1,561-acre campus. UCM offers 150 programs of study, including 10 pre-profes ...

in 1939. He was a high school teacher, coach and principal in

Carrollton, Missouri Carrollton is a city in Carroll County, Missouri, United States. Carrollton won the 2005 All-America City Award, given out annually by the National Civic League. The population was 3,514 at the 2020 census. Carrollton is the county seat of Carro ...

High School from 1939 to 1942. While working on a master's from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

, he left to become a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After the war he would be state commander of the Missouri

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

. In 1943 he married Virginia Mutz Foster of

Maryville, Missouri Maryville is a city and county seat of Nodaway County, Missouri, United States. Located in the "Missouri Point" region, As of the 2020 census, the city population was 10,633. Maryville is home to Northwest Missouri State University and Northwes ...

Northwest

After the war they moved to Maryville where he purchased E.L Townsend Grocery Co. which he operated until 1948 when he became registrar and later director of admissions at Northwest. He finished his master's in 1951 and a Phd from the University of Missouri in 1960. He served as dean of administration from 1959 until 1964.

Northwest president

He was the first president to deal with increased competition from

Missouri Western State University Missouri Western State University is a public university in Saint Joseph, Missouri. As of 2019, it enrolled 5,413 students. History Missouri Western State University was founded in 1915 as a two-year institution called St. Joseph Junior College ...

. His approach was to massively grow the school. Building built under his watch included: *Garrett-Strong Science Building *Olive DeLuce Fine Arts Building; *Four high-rise residence halls *Donald Valk Building *Expansion of the J.W. Jones Student Union *Colden Hall renovations *Martindale Hall renovations *Administration Building renovations *Memorial Bell Tower - the first building funded by the Northwest Foundation *

KXCV KXCV (90.5 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Maryville, Missouri, United States. The station is owned by Northwest Missouri State University and features programming from American Public Media and N ...

The school changed from a four year school to having a master program resulting in its name change from Northwest Missouri State College to Northwest Missouri State University.

Post presidency

Foster remained active in Maryville after leaving the presidency receiving a

Silver Antelope Award The Silver Antelope Award is a distinguished service award presented by the Boy Scouts of America for outstanding service to young people. From 1942 to 2021 it recognized service within one of the geographical regions of the BSA. Beginning in 2022 ...

for his work in the

Boy Scouts Boy Scouts may refer to: * Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement. * Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement. * An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...

. In 1981 the Robert P. Foster Aquatic Center was named for him.Dr. Robert P. Foster Former president dies at age 90 - Northwest Family - May 2008 - nwmissuri.edu
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Robert 1917 births 2008 deaths People from Warrensburg, Missouri Presidents of Northwest Missouri State University University of Missouri alumni University of Central Missouri alumni People from Maryville, Missouri 20th-century American academics