Richard Cost, who served as president of the University of Maine Fort Kent from 2002 to 2010, died over the weekend, the University announced on Thursday. He was 81.
Cost worked for the UMaine system for more than two decades, including his tenure as president emeritus, awarded in 2012.
While serving as president, enrollment at UMFK increased by a third, according to UMaine. Powell Hall at UMFK, northern Maine’s first LEED-certified building, became the new home to the Acadian Archives.
In a statement, the University said Cost took a special interest in meeting the ongoing challenges of rural communities, and that at the time of his death, he was in his 14th year serving as a trustee at the Davis Educational Foundation, a Maine-based organization that funds programs aimed at improving teaching and learning, and reducing the cost of higher education.
Cost ushered in online education as a larger part of the curriculum at UMFK, added e-commerce and rural public safety programs to address changing trends and needs of the area, and hosted the first IBU international Biathlon World Cup event on American soil.
A 1964 graduate of Old Dominion University, Cost started his career in May, 1962, as a captain in the Navy Reserve. He served five tours in command, was awarded the Navy
Meritorious Service Medal and retired in 1994, after serving more than 32 years.
Dannel Malloy, UMS Chancellor called Cost “an incredible resource to [the UMaine system] on many levels. From his leadership and insight to the many visionary projects he took on after his retirement, he was a true leader whose values will be missed.”
UMFK President Deb Hedeen noted Cost’s “legacy of celebrating Acadian culture and realizing the importance of higher education in rural communities have had a lingering impact.”
A Memorial Service will be held on October 28, at 2 p.m., at the First Congregational Church of Plympton, 254 Main St., Plympton, Massachusetts.
