University Of Denver Names 1st Woman Chancellor

DENVER (AP) — Swarthmore College president Rebecca Chopp has been named the new chancellor of the University of Denver.

The university announced Thursday that Chopp would succeed Robert Coombe, who is retiring after 33 years in office. Chopp will be the first woman to lead the school, one of the largest and oldest private universities in the Rockies.

Chopp has served as president of Swarthmore, outside Philadelphia, since 2009. Before that, she was president of Colgate University.

The Kansas native is also a scholar of American religious movements. She has researched the changing structures and cultures of higher education, the role of liberal arts in democracies and on religion and higher education.

The school will hold a welcoming ceremony for Chopp on Friday. She is scheduled to start work before the fall semester.

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