(ChurchLeaders) On Tuesday, Francis Collins announced that he is stepping down as director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) by the end of the year.
Collins served as NIH director for over 12 years across three presidential administrations. He is the longest-serving NIH director and the only director to have served under more than one president.
In the announcement, Collins said, “It has been an incredible privilege to lead this great agency for more than a decade,” going on to say, “I fundamentally believe, however, that no single person should serve in the position too long, and that it’s time to bring in a new scientist to lead the NIH into the future. I’m most grateful and proud of the NIH staff and the scientific community, whose extraordinary commitment to lifesaving research delivers hope to the American people and the world every day.”