Putting a former U.S. Marine and prosecutor of mafia killers in charge of a private Portland liberal arts college may seem like an odd fit.

But the committee that chose

as president of

announced Tuesday, says it makes sense.

When Kroger wasn't slugging it out with thugs and thieves, he was studying philosophy at Yale University and teaching at

in Portland.

Reed, where tuition and fees are $42,800 a year, needs a leader to help raise money for scholarships to attract more diverse students in race and class, says Geraldine Ondrizek, an art professor and member of the search committee. It also needs "someone able to take the heat," she said.

Kroger, who attended Yale on a scholarship, understands first hand the need for student financial aid and the power of education to change lives.

"My whole life was changed by the liberal arts education I got at Yale," he said.

He compared Reed's humanities program to the directed studies he took at Yale, focusing on classics with an emphasis on writing and small groups of students working with professors.

Reed "is a remarkable place," he said. "It has an unparalleled commitment to the life of the mind."

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Kroger, 46, will take command of the 1,400-student college this summer, probably July 1, replacing

who has led Reed for the last decade. Kroger will get a $375,000 annual salary plus a housing stipend.

He told Gov. John Kitzhaber Tuesday morning he would be leaving office before his term ends in January. The governor can select any Democrat to finish the term, including one of the

l, Ellen Rosenblum, a former Oregon Appeals Court judge or Dwight Holton, a former federal prosecutor.

Kroger announced in October he was not seeking a second term because of a "significant but not life-threatening medical condition." He wants to protect his medical privacy, he said Tuesday, but added the health "issues have been addressed, and I'll be back to close to 100 percent this summer."

The Reed job will be demanding, he said, but not in the same way as public office.

He will be leading one of the most liberal and academically rigorous colleges in the nation. Only three other U.S. colleges send a higher portion of their graduates on to earn doctoral degrees. U.S. News and World Report ranks Reed the 57th best liberal arts college in the nation, even though Reed refuses to participate in the ranking. Reed has produced 31 Rhodes scholars.

As at Lewis & Clark Law School, the faculty helps govern Reed, a culture Kroger said he is comfortable with.

As president, he said, he will work to strengthen Reed's ties to Portland and the Northwest, increase diversity, protect the 10-1 student-faculty ratio and raise more financial aid so any qualified student can attend.

He will get some help from the college's capital campaign, only $1 million shy of its $200 million goal, $66 million of which will go to financial aid. The average annual financial aid package for Reed students is $35,990.

As attorney general, Kroger has his supporters and critics. He has been aggressive in prosecuting environmental crimes and mortgage fraud and protecting civil rights. He argued twice before the U.S. Supreme Court. He was an advocate for district attorneys and went after public figures, said

and past president of the Oregon District Attorneys Association.

"He afflicted the comfortable and comforted the afflicted," said Marquis. "He did a lot."

But Marc Abrams, president of the Oregon Association of Justice Attorneys,

said

Kroger is leaving a Department of Justice with poor morale and high staff turnover. Critics think he fell far short of promises.

"He's oriented on the external, not the internal," Abrams said. "He is not going to be the guy they find at faculty get togethers."

A 12-member committee of faculty and board members began searching for a new president shortly after Diver announced he was leaving last summer. Reed invited Kroger to consider the presidency sometime in later summer or early fall, a spokesman said.

Once the applicants were narrowed to 20, Reed sent teams of three or four professors and students to interview them across the country. About 80 faculty, staff, students and board members met with Kroger and other finalists.

In a prepared statement, Roger Perlmutter, chair of the

, said, "John impressed us with his brilliance and clarity, advocacy for the primacy of liberal arts education and his commitment to the mission and vision for Reed College."

Kroger chronicles his life and his experiences as

from 1997 to 2001 in his popular book: "Convictions: A Prosecutor's Battle Against Mafia Killers, Drug Kingpins, and Enron Thieves."

He earned a bachelor's and a master's degree in four years at Yale University before going to Harvard Law School. He taught criminal law as a tenured professor at Lewis & Clark Law School and was elected attorney general in 2008.

An avid runner, cyclist and hiker, Kroger has biked across the country and has run Oregon's Hood to Coast Relay seven times, though he's not sure if he will do it again this summer. His wife, Michele Toppe, is dean of student life at Portland State University.