Barbara Kline Pope, a leader in academic publishing who has dedicated her career to sharing high-quality research as widely as possible, has decided to retire from her role as executive director of Johns Hopkins University Press effective Feb. 1, 2027, university leaders announced today. Since her arrival in 2017, Pope has steered Hopkins Press, the nation's first university press, through a complex era for academic publishing characterized by industrywide consolidation, shrinking higher education budgets, and the challenges and opportunities associated with the growth of artificial intelligence. Hopkins Press, founded in 1878, operates a uniquely diverse portfolio of four interconnected publishing businesses. With one of the largest journal programs of any American university press, it publishes 120 journals and manages membership for 27 scholarly and professional associations and societies. Hopkins Press is also home to Project MUSE, a highly trusted and widely used massive online scholarship collection that is the leading provider of digital humanities and social sciences content.