Emily K. RaffertyCreditAstrid Stawiarz/Getty Images

Emily K. Rafferty, the first woman to be named president of theMetropolitan Museum of Art, announced on Tuesday that she was stepping down after 10 years in that role and nearly four decades at the institution, which she is credited with financially shepherding through a period of sustained growth.

Ms. Rafferty, 65, will retire next spring, giving the Met time to form a search committee and find a replacement.

“I am convinced it’s the right time,” she said in an interview. “The Met is on the brink of a lot of changes, so that’s a good time for a breath of fresh air.”

As the museum’s chief administrative officer, Ms. Rafferty oversees some 1,500 full- and part-time employees in areas like finance, legal affairs, development and government relations and serves as an ex officio member of the museum’s board. She is known for her skill in dealing with the trustees and other philanthropists, whose donations have stoked the Met’s growth in areas like boosting its attendance to 6.2 million visitors a year, from 4.8 million in 2008....Continue Reading

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