'Butte welcomed me with open arms': Les Cook reflects on time as Montana Tech's chancellor, retirement

Utah cattleman Jed Cook died just shy of age 99. Son Les described his father as an old rough-and-tough, leathery-faced cowboy who cinched his saddle in his 90s to ride in a Pony Express reenactment.  

Ibapah, where the Cook family ranched, hosted a Pony Express station back in 1860 and 1861.

Last week, Les Cook’s office bookcase at Montana Technological University was approaching bare. But one of Jed Cook’s less begrimed cowboy hats still occupied a place of honor.

Les Cook, 61, retires June 30 after six years as Montana Tech’s chancellor.

It’s been a good ride, he said.

“I will miss the interaction with people, and there are really good people here,” he said. “I’ve never worked with a more committed, caring group of faculty and staff who care deeply about students and their success.”

Cook held student affairs jobs for years and said he thoroughly enjoyed that niche. He felt ambivalent for a time about becoming a chancellor or president.

He said Deneece Huftalin, former president of Salt Lake Community College, and other colleagues had pushed him to grab the reins somewhere.

“My friend Deneece kept telling me, ‘You’re really good. You’ve got to be a president. You have to look for a president or chancellor’s job,’” Cook said.

He resisted.

“I said, ‘If I’m ever going to be in one of those roles, I have to be somewhere where I can be myself, because I’m not going to be somebody else,’” Cook recalled.  

“And Butte was the place that welcomed me with open arms,” he said. “I mean, I feel like I’m pretty blunt. I may bring joy, but I am also harsh. Butte has been a welcoming place. Both my wife and I have had a great time. It’s been a lot of fun.”

It seems Cook’s bluntness, his capacity to deliver joy and an occasional penchant for harshness yielded a host of accomplishments during his tenure.

They ranged from expanding academic offerings, including adding a Ph.D. in Earth Science and Engineering, to receiving remarkable philanthropic gifts to adding men’s and women’s cross-country and track and field programs and much more.

The gifts included a historic $31 million commitment from Ryan and Lisa Lance and $7 million from Dave and Sherry Lesar.

In the fall of 2024, Montana Tech welcomed the largest first-year class in 14 years with 504 students.

There’s more, including, notably, the addition of a soft ice cream machine. Cook said that might ultimately be his lasting legacy.

The chancellor’s job isn’t immune from controversy and brickbats. Cook suspects a few enemies made in his early years dislike him still. The COVID-19 pandemic was a major trial for the campus.

He said working in student affairs had been a good fit and less fraught.

“Everything I did resonated with me,” Cook said. “In this job, you’re pulled in a lot of different directions. So, it’s hard. You’re not going to bring joy to everybody because there’s a lot of people who don’t like you or are going to be pissed about this or that, probably.”

Cook decided as a teenager that ranching did not fully resonate.

“I thought, ‘I don’t want to do this. I want a different life,’” he said. “I thought I’d be a veterinarian or an extension agent.”

Cook’s experiences in 4-H helped shape him. He said the 4-H Motto, “To Make the Best Better,” stuck.

“I had two 4-H leaders who were just awesome and I’m still in contact with them today,” he said. “They really influenced me.”

Cook said their guidance later informed his work with students — suggesting how to communicate tough love and how to challenge and support.

Cook jokes that an “overachiever gene” pushed him through a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree at Utah State University in five years. He met Stephanie, the woman who later became his wife, at a fraternity luau. They have two grown children.

Cook graduated from Brigham Young University with a doctorate in education. He worked at a variety of schools before landing in July 2003 in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

He left Michigan Technological University in 2019 after 16 years to succeed Don Blackketter as Montana Tech’s chancellor.  

Now, Les and Stephanie Cook will spend at least part of each year in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, with the balance in Utah.

Cook envisions taking time to ponder what comes next. In the interim, he plans to wield brush and palette, favoring oils as medium and clouds as inspiration.

“I’m utterly fascinated with clouds,” he said. “I almost run off the road, like all the time, because I’m taking pictures of clouds. I told the people at the Main Stope Gallery that I’m going to be the cloud expert and be able to paint clouds like nobody else.”

Cook expressed admiration for the people of Butte.

“I’ve never been anywhere where people are as generous as they are here,” he said. “If there’s some tragedy, some tragic situation, everybody rises to the occasion.”

It seems Butte has liked him back.  

J. P. Gallagher, chief executive of Butte-Silver Bow County, praised Cook’s tenure at Montana Tech.

“Dr. Cook has been a strong force on our economic development team, working on initiatives and local events that have strengthened both Butte and Montana Tech,” Gallagher said. “Collaborating with him has been an honor, and his dedication to fostering growth and the student experience at Montana Tech will leave a lasting impact.

“Throughout their time in Butte, Les and Stephanie Cook truly embodied the spirit of community, and I am deeply grateful for all they have contributed,” Gallagher added. “I congratulate Dr. Cook on his well-earned retirement and wish him and Stephanie the very best in the next chapter of their journey.”

Cook received high praise also from Pat Munday, a longtime member of the Montana Tech faculty known for being outspoken. He said Cook avoided the character flaws that Munday attributed to previous chancellors and "was in all aspects a good leader." 

Munday added, "Les Cook was an excellent leader during a critical time. As a breath of fresh air, he broke up the good-old-boy network that long dominated Tech’s administration and saw to the appointment of competent and forward-thinking administrators.

"His good character was revealed when, despite the worst efforts of the old-boy network, he rose above it: taking no personal offense and carrying out no reprisals," Munday said.

"Les could not have taken up the reins at a more perilous time," he said. "Prior to his hiring, several Tech programs were already in a serious downturn. The university had cut programs and fired untenured faculty. Then, after Les began, came COVID-19 with its severe disruptions in face-to-face teaching and enrollment."

Munday said Cook steered recruitment in ways that played to Montana Tech's strengths and succeeded in attracting students. 

"Today, Tech is a far more sound institution than it was prior to Chancellor Cook’s arrival," he said. "We can all thank him for that. After 35 years with Tech, I am retiring and it’s really uplifting to leave on a high note."

Meanwhile, Cook was asked what advice he might offer Johnny MacLean, his successor as chancellor. He said he is elated about MacLean taking the helm.

“He will be such an asset to this institution and the community,” Cook said. “He’s got a ton of energy. He’s a lot smarter than I am. He’s the right person.”

As for advice for MacLean, currently provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Montana Western?

“Always remember it’s the little things that matter. I would say to love Butte and Butte will love you back. And to be real, be who you are.”