Recent reports that Matthew D. Serra, the chief executive and board chairman of Foot Locker, is leaving have been confirmed, and he will be replaced as president and CEO effective Aug. 17. Ken C. Hicks will step into these roles and join the board of directors. Hicks, 56, comes from J.C. Penney, where he had been president and chief merchandising officer since 2005. He has also held the position of president of Payless ShoeSource. Serra, 64, started with the company as president and CEO of Foot Locker Worldwide, moving up to president and chief operating officer in 2000 and president and CEO in 2001. He has been chairman of the board since 2004, and will continue in that role until his retirement at the end of the current fiscal year, Jan. 30, 2010. He will retire from the board then as well.