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Coppin State President To Step Down At School Year's End

BALTIMORE (AP) — The first female president of Coppin State University has announced she'll step down at the end of the school year.

News outlets report that Maria Thompson wrote in an email to the university community that she would return to her hometown of Nashville "to begin a new chapter," following her recovery from cancer and recent marriage.

The 57-year-old became president of the historically black university in 2015, two years after an investigation found evidence of serious management.

Thompson says the university is now "on the right course" financially. Enrollment, however, is still down. Thompson says she'll work to recruit and retain students during the remainder of her tenure.

University System of Maryland spokesman Mike Lurie says the search process for a new president typically takes at least five months.

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