In Memoriam: Dr. Paul Kooistra (1942 – 2026)
The Erskine College family is saddened by the passing of former president Dr. Paul Kooistra, who died July 1, 2026, after a brief battle with cancer.
Kooistra was announced as the 16th president of Erskine in July 2014 and served until his retirement in late 2016. During his time at Erskine, he helped stabilize the College during a period of accreditation and financial concerns.
At his retirement, Mike LeFever, then president and CEO of South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (SCICU), honored Kooistra with a framed resolution outlining the president’s accomplishments.
Born in Duluth, Minnesota, Kooistra graduated from Columbia Seminary in Decatur, Georgia, with a Master of Divinity and earned his doctorate at the University of Alabama.
Kooistra had a lengthy history in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) dating to its founding in 1973. Before coming to Erskine, he served as president of Covenant Theological Seminary in Creve Coeur, Missouri, and, later, coordinator of Mission to the World, a PCA missionary agency. After stepping down as coordinator of Mission to the World in 2014, he became president at Erskine.
At the time of his appointment, Kooistra said, “As I begin to work at Erskine, the only goals I have set for myself are to depend on the Lord and pray that He will lead me and the institution….”
Since his retirement from Erskine, he has served the PCA administrative committee as a placement and development consultant.
Kooistra’s wife of 43 years, Janet, passed away in 2008. He married Sandra Tucker in 2009 and is survived by her, as well as five adult children and seven grandchildren, including Erskine College alumna Maggie Dare Sullivan ’20.
