Brown University President Christina Paxson to Step Down After 2026–27 Academic Year

After nearly 15 years leading the Ivy League school, Paxson cited the need for new leadership to oversee the next planning phase.

Christina Paxson, president of Brown University, speaks during a press conference after a shooting on campus in Providence, R.I., on Dec. 13, 2025. Libby O'Neill/Getty Images

Brown University President Christina H. Paxson announced Monday that she will step down after the 2026–27 academic year. The move ends her tenure, which began in July 2012 and will have lasted 15 years.

In a letter to the Brown community, Paxson expressed mixed emotions over the decision, saying it was ultimately the right choice for her, her family, and the university. She noted that the university accomplished the goals made at the outset of her presidency.

“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. “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.”

In a separate letter, Chancellor Brian T. Moynihan confirmed the Corporation of Brown University will begin conducting a national search for the university’s next president.

Moynihan called Paxson “an inspiring, visionary, purpose-driven and amazingly steadfast and stalwart leader for Brown.”

He noted that the Corporation had in May 2025 unanimously approved an extension of Paxson’s term to June 30, 2028. Paxson, however, felt the university needed a new strategic planning process with fresh leadership.

“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 wrote.

Paxson had initially agreed to the earlier extension in order to assist the university in navigating a federal funding freeze that began affecting research in 2025. The Trump administration threatened to block $510 million in federal contracts and grants for Brown over concerns about alleged anti-Semitism on campus. The university reached a deal with the administration in July.

“I am proud that we came to an agreement with the federal government that restored our funding while staying true to Brown’s values,” she wrote.

She said that the federal landscape is still uncertain for higher education institutions but expressed optimism due to ongoing grants supporting research in medical treatments, technological progress, and policy.

Paxson oversaw Brown’s establishment of the School of Public Health, the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship, and the Watson School of International and Public Affairs.

During her presidency, the university raised funds for more than 165 endowed professorships, removed loans from undergraduate financial aid packages so students can graduate without being burdened by debt, and also cancelled tuition for families earning $125,000 or less. In addition, need-blind admissions were extended to international students.

Campus investments surpassed $2 billion, including new research facilities, performing arts spaces, and student housing. Brown’s endowment reached $8 billion in market value by fiscal year 2025, supporting a projected $368.8 million for the academic mission in the current budget year. A fundraising campaign under her tenure raised more than $4.4 billion from over 76,800 donors.

Moynihan highlighted Paxson’s focus on academic and operational excellence, as well as her collaboration with faculty, students, and the city of Providence. He said the Corporation will include Brown community members in the presidential search, while supporting Paxson in her final year.

“I will look back on my time as Brown’s president as the most rewarding job I could possibly have had,” Paxson wrote. “Truly, it has been the opportunity of a lifetime.”