Emory University Leader To Step Down In August After 4 Years

Emory University President Claire Sterk will retire from leading the Georgia university in August, returning to a full-time faculty role.

Sterk announced the move Wednesday in an email to faculty, students and staff. The university says it will launch a search for a successor.

She’s been president of the 15,000-student university since 2016.

Under Sterk’s leadership, the university annexed its main campus into the Atlanta city limits. She also cites a 28% increase in research funding since 2017 as among her achievements.

Sterk has been a professor at Emory for 24 years, serving as provost before becoming president. She plans a sabbatical before returning to her role as a public health professor, saying she wants to work on opioid abuse, access to mental health and global child health.