James V. Maher, who has been the University of Pittsburgh provost for 15 years, will step down next year and return to teaching, the university announced this week.

Dr. Maher, provost and senior vice chancellor, intends to give up his duties at the start of the next school year or once a successor is in place, officials said.

Dr. Maher, who holds bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in physics, joined Pitt's faculty in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in 1970. He became provost of the university with 34,000 students in June 1994.

As its chief academic officer, Dr. Maher is credited with helping Pitt advance on a number of fronts, from research and teaching to admissions.

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