Tue, Nov 10, 2009
Position Eliminated Due To Declining Membership,
Sponsorships
The Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio announced late last
week that Executive Director Ron Kaplan was let go as a
cost-savings measure due to declining memberships and commercial
sponsorships. A second full-time employee was also released, and
the two remaining paid staffers have had their hours reduced, the
organization said.
Robbie Robinson, chair of the organizations board of trustees,
said the move had nothing to do with performance.
The Dayton Daily News reports that Kaplan had been with the Hall
of Fame for 11 years, and had served as Executive Director since
2005. He was informed of the decision last Wednesday, and given 21
days to consider a severance package.
The paper reports that commercial sponsorships for 2009 were
about half what they had been last year. The organizations annual
budget is about $800,000. The Hall of Fame was chartered by
Congress in 1964, but it receives no federal funding.
Kaplan told the paper he was "stunned". "My passion for the
mission to the Hall of Fame and my dedication to the enshrinees has
been my priority for 11 years," he said in a telephone interview.
"I truly fear for the future of the organization."
The organizations volunteer board will continue to run the Hall
of Fame, and conduct the annual enshrinement of inductees. Robinson
said the move will bring the hall "back to its roots" as a
volunteer-run organization envisioned when it was created in
1962.
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