F. Christopher Goins has resigned as president of Girard College, less than a year after taking over

F. Christopher Goins has resigned as president of Girard College, less than a year after he took over at the storied Philadelphia boarding school.

Goins, who became president July 1, resigned on March 31 for personal reasons, according to the Board of Directors of City Trusts, which oversees the school in Fairmount.

“I want to express my sincere gratitude to each and every one of you for your support, hard work, and dedication to the mission of Girard College,” Goins said in a statement released by the board. “I am proud of the work we have accomplished together, and I will always cherish the memories and relationships I have formed during my time at the college.”

Bernard W. Smalley, president of the board of directors, and Lynette M. Brown-Sow, chair of the Girard College Committee, said in the statement that the board “takes this opportunity to thank him for his service to the educational mission of Girard College, and to wish him well.”

“While this is difficult news for all of us, we want you to know that we are at work to ensure that campus life and the daily routine of our students will not be interrupted,” the statement said. “In the coming days, we expect to announce the appointment of an Interim president to lead the college.”

Smalley directed a reporter to spokesperson Kevin Feeley, who said that he couldn’t comment further on the leadership change other than to say Goins resigned for personal reasons and “we have agreed to honor that decision.”

Goins was selected to lead Girard College last year following a six-month national search. Previously, he was the founder of a high-performing Chicago charter school and worked with the Obama Foundation to build a nonprofit, My Brother’s Keeper Alliance, focused on expanding programs for boys and young men of color.

At the time of his hiring, Goins praised the school as an example of “true educational equity in action.” Founded in 1848 after merchant Stephen Girard left money in his will to start a boarding school for “poor white male orphans,” Girard College first admitted Black students in 1968 following a years-long battle for integration. The school later began admitting female students.

Today, it educates about 300 children in first through 12th grades, all economically disadvantaged and from single-parent households. Students receive full scholarships and live on campus during the week.

At the time of his arrival in Philadelphia, Goins told the Philadelphia Business Journal that, while overseeing academic and fundraising initiatives, his goal was to be a stable leader at the school.

“In the past 10 years, I’m the fourth president, so there has been a lack of consistency. There’s a lot of turnover. And with that, every president brings in a new leadership,” Goins said. “There’s just been a lot of historical knowledge that has been lost.”