Brown University president to step down after long tenure
· UPIAug. 3 (UPI) -- Christina Paxson, the president of Brown University, announced Monday that she will step down at the end of the 2026-27 academic year.
"The experience has been all that I could have hoped for, and more," she said in a message to the university community. "This is the right decision for me and my family. And I firmly believe that it is the best path for Brown."
Paxson became president of Brown in 2012, making her tenure the longest of any current Ivy League university leader.
In 2025, she agreed to extend her tenure in the office from June 2026 to June 2028 to "help Brown navigate a federal funding freeze that imperiled our mission of research and education."
The university reached an agreement with the federal government in July 25 that restored some of that funding in return for Brown agreeing to some Trump administration demands. That included policies toward transgender athletes and "merit-based" admissions, which earned widespread criticism from the campus community.
However, Paxson also rejected a compact with the U.S. Education Department that would have given Brown access to research funding in return for aligning itself with the administration's policies.
Her tenure also saw tragedy. In December, a former Brown student opened fire at the university, killing two people and injuring others.
Over the past 14 years, Brown also opened two new schools and created 165 new endowed professorships. Paxson also launched a strategic plan to improve the university and a diversity and inclusion action plan that ended last year.
Brown Chancellor Brian Moynihan said Monday that the Brown Corporation, the university's governing body, will conduct a nationwide search for the next president.
"Brown will be fortunate to find another leader with the dedication and commitment of President Paxson, who always put the needs of this community and Brown's mission of service first," Moynihan said in his own letter.
Paxson said in her letter that she looks forward to Brown's future.
"Universities thrive on the excitement of new ideas and the healthy challenge of reinvention that only a new president can bring," she wrote.