'Difficult decision' as Royal Conservatoire principal steps down after 16 years
Professor Sharkey is to remain in post until next summer
The principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland is to step down after 16 years in the role - as the institution marks is 180th year.
Professor Jeffrey Sharkey, who is currently one of Scotland’s longest-serving higher education principals, said it was a “difficult decision” to leave RCS, but said he believed it was an “appropriate time for a new chapter”.
He is to remain in post until summer next year while a replacement is recruited.
Pianist and composer Prof Sharkey joined RCS in September 2014 from Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute in Baltimore, in the US, where he was director for eight years.
During his tenure, RCS, which boasts Outlander star Sam Heughan among its alumni, has raised its profile domestically and internationally and has been ranked the top 10 world leading institutions for performing arts education 10 times since 2015.
Prof Sharkey said: “This has of course been a difficult decision for me, given how much I love life at RCS and our wonderful community of staff and students. There’s never a perfect time for these things, but this feels an appropriate time to step back and have a new chapter begin for me personally, as well as for the RCS as it celebrates its 180th anniversary.
“There will be time for reflections about my time at RCS in due course. In the meantime, I remain focused on our shared goals for a positive academic year in 26-27 for RCS and delivering towards our longer-term ambitions as set out in the strategic plan.”
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