James Ryan, the president of University of Virginia, says he will resign from his position following pressure from the Donald Trump administration amid inquiry into the school over its diversity policy. 

Mr Ryan announced his decision to resign in a letter to the University of Virginia’s governing board on Thursday, stating that he has concluded “with deep sadness” to step down as the institution’s president at the end of the next academic year.

This followed a demand by the Trump administration for Mr Ryan’s resignation as a condition to end its civil rights lawsuit against the university over investigation into the school’s diversity practices in what the White House described as ‘racist policies’ in American higher institutions. 

According to the New York Times, it was unclear the exact date Mr Ryan would formally leave office, noting in his letter to the university’s governing body that his resignation could be effective immediately but “no later than August 15, 2025.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the Times reported that the Trump administration had in the past 10 days issued a stern warning to the University of Virginia management that it needed to act quickly.

The Department of Justice had informed the university that it received multiple complaints of race-based treatment on campus and that the government found that applicants’ racial backgrounds were put into consideration during the school’s admission process.