College Administrator Koblik Tapped to Head Huntington

Steven S. Koblik, president of Reed College in Portland, Ore., has been appointed president of the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in San Marino. A scholar of European history who oversaw a building boom at Reed and led a $112-million capital campaign that increased the college’s endowment to $350 million, he will succeed retiring Huntington President Robert A. Skotheim on Sept. 1.

“I like institutions that are distinctive,” Koblik said in a telephone interview. “What excites me most about the Huntington is that it is a unique cultural-educational institution. This is a wonderful opportunity to be a steward of an organization that combines an extraordinary research library and a commitment to scholarly research and publication with special art collections and public gardens.”

Huntington officials said Koblik’s success at Reed qualifies him to take the helm at a time of unprecedented growth. During Skotheim’s 13-year tenure, the Huntington has made major improvements to its facilities and boosted its membership and volunteer corps while increasing the endowment from $68 million to $170 million.

Koblik’s colleagues at Reed said it was inevitable that he would take on a bigger challenge. “He’s the best president Reed ever had,” said Steve McCarthy, vice chairman of the college’s board of trustees. “He’s a marvelous guy, can do anything and is a great find for the Huntington. I’ve never seen anybody work so hard as he has at Reed. He raised a huge amount of money, the students love him and he’s been brilliant with the faculty.”

A native of Sacramento, Koblik, 59, earned a bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley in 1963, a master’s degree from the University of Stockholm in 1964 and a PhD in European history from Northwestern University in 1970. He is the author of “The Stones Cry Out: Sweden’s Response to the Persecution of the Jews, 1933-1945,” among other publications.

Before his presidency at Reed, he was a college professor in Southern California for about 24 years. After a year at UC Riverside, in 1967-68, he moved to the Claremont Colleges. He was a professor of history at Pomona College from 1968-89 and taught additional classes at the Claremont Graduate School. He joined the faculty of Scripps College in 1989 and served as dean of faculty there until 1992, when he went to Reed.