Brown University President Christina Paxson to step down

Brown University President Christina Paxson announced she will step down at the end of the 2026-2027 academic year. Paxson, who has served as president since 2012, said this is the right time for a new leader and is the best path for the university. "Fifteen years is a significant tenure for any president, and in that time, this amazing community of faculty, staff, students, alumni, parents and friends showed up in so many ways to achieve the bold aspirations in the strategic plan we developed together near the beginning of my presidency," Paxson wrote in a letter to the Brown community. "Brown is wonderfully poised to begin its next chapter, and a transition in leadership now will ensure the vision for the next phase is set by Brown’s next leader and stewarded by them from the beginning." Brown University Chancellor Brian T. Moynihan said Paxson's term was set to end in June 30, 2028, but she indicated that Brown is ready for a change. "The Corporation in May 2025 had unanimously approved the extension of President Paxson’s term to June 30, 2028, but she let us know she feels that Brown will soon be ready to begin a new strategic planning process. It is her strong belief - and the Corporation and I agreed - that it is the right time to find a new president who will lead this multi-year effort for Brown and be in place to implement their vision for the next generation," Moynihan said. Paxson said she has fulfilled the goals of her latest term extension, which included helping Brown navigate a federal funding freeze. "While the federal landscape remains volatile for all colleges and universities, Brown is receiving major grants for pioneering research that will lead to tremendous innovation for this country," she said. "We also continue to expand access to a Brown education and to admit the best and brightest students in alignment with our commitment to bring students with a diversity of ideas, perspectives and experiences to Brown to educate them for lives of meaning and purpose." According to school officials, the Corporation of Brown University will launch a national search to find Brown University’s 20th president. "We are committed to involving members of the Brown community to help us find the best person for Brown’s next chapter, while at the same time we work with President Paxson to establish priorities for her final academic year," Moynihan said. ALSO READ: Smiley announces a 'Cradle-to-Career' strategy This announcement comes less than a year after a shooting at Brown University that killed two students and injured multiple others. As university president, Paxson navigated the tragedy after Portuguese national Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, who attended the school as a graduate student in 2000 and 2001, opened fire inside a classroom on Dec. 13, 2025. "I have the utmost respect for the President Paxson," said Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez. "She is a very compassionate person, and I know through the difficult times the city went through and that Brown went through, she was here and she was a good listener." However, Paxson received criticism following the shooting on campus security and the number of cameras in the area of the shooting. Brown University Police Chief Rodney Chatman also left the school as part of a settlement in April and was replaced by former Providence Police Chief Col. Hugh Clements. Perez confirmed that Brown University, at this point, has not connected it's campus cameras to the Real Time Crime Center. "We're still in conversation with them, they're upgrading a lot of their systems so once that's all finalized, I'm sure that the goal is to ensure they can sign up," said Col. Perez. The tool used by police in Providence is only one year old. A school, business, or homeowner would have to voluntarily connect their security cameras to the crime center.