The president of Standard & Poor's, the credit ratings company that downgraded the U.S. credit rating, is stepping down.

S & P's parent company, McGraw Hill, announced that Deven Sharma will be replaced by current Citibank Chief Operating Officer Douglas Peterson.

Peterson will take control on September 12 while Sharma will stay on as an advisor until the end of 2011. A company statement says Sharma is leaving to “pursue other opportunities.”

The announcement comes just weeks after the credit ratings company downgraded the U.S. rating from AAA to AA+, the first credit rating downgrade in U.S. history. The downgrade in credit rating was accompanied by an S&P report criticizing the U.S. debt levels, political infighting and the raising of the debt ceiling.

U.S. President Barack Obama said he disagrees with the S&P downgrade, but that he hopes it will prompt lawmakers in Washington to agree on what he called a balanced approach to debt and deficit reduction – including higher taxes for the wealthy and cuts in spending on social programs.