PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Brown University President Christina H. Paxson is stepping down after nearly 15 years leading the Ivy League school. “Brown is wonderfully poised to begin its next chapter,” Paxson wrote in a letter to the university community. She said the next president should shape Brown’s future vision and lead the institution into its next era. Paxson’s final year follows a turbulent stretch that included a 2025 federal freeze on Brown’s research funding. Brown will now launch a nationwide search for its 20th president.