Joel McKissick, executive director of the Stanley, will be leaving at the end of May for a job at Le Moyne College.
The Stanley Center for the Arts is losing its latest executive director after less than a year. Joel McKissick and Stanley officials confirmed Thursday that he will be leaving the venerable but financially struggling theater for a job at the W. Carroll Coyne Center for the Performing Arts at Le Moyne College.
“He did a great job, and we are sorry to see him go,” Stanley board President Steve Zogby said. “He helped us with getting the theater back on track. Things are going a lot better than they were a year ago.”
McKissick did not return calls, but said in a release that the Stanley has a bright future.
“There are so many plans in the works, great things and a great fall schedule, that I am confident the Stanley is on its way to returning to the important position it once served in the community,” he said.
Stanley officials said McKissick had put the theater on a course back to sound financial footing and had hired experienced professionals in key positions.
McKissick came to the Stanley in April 2011 as its director of operations, but was promoted to executive director three months later. He will leave at the end of May.
He took over after several leadership changes at the Stanley. Central New York Arts Council Executive Director Ron Thiele and Theater Manager John Faust left in 2010.
Elizabeth Tantillo then briefly served as interim executive director of the Stanley before McKissick was appointed.
The Stanley now will be seeking an interim executive director to serve until a permanent leader can be found. A timeframe for the search has not yet been determined, he said.
The Stanley went through a $20 million renovation project that was completed in 2008. The organization remains in debt from those expenditures, and attendance figures have fallen short of expectations.
In 2010, the Stanley ran a $635,015 deficit, according to federal nonprofit forms. It made $829,331 in total revenue but spent $1.48 million that year.
McKissick has said the organization had been cutting expenses and focusing more on being a rental house rather than presenting its own shows.
John Fehlner, executive director of the Broadway Theatre League, which presents performances at the Stanley, said McKissick had worked hard for the theater during difficult economic times.
“We have to continue to work together,” he said of the members of Utica’s small arts community. “He had a tough job.”
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“He did a great job, and we are sorry to see him go,” Stanley board President Steve Zogby said. “He helped us with getting the theater back on track. Things are going a lot better than they were a year ago.”
McKissick did not return calls, but said in a release that the Stanley has a bright future.
“There are so many plans in the works, great things and a great fall schedule, that I am confident the Stanley is on its way to returning to the important position it once served in the community,” he said.
Stanley officials said McKissick had put the theater on a course back to sound financial footing and had hired experienced professionals in key positions.
McKissick came to the Stanley in April 2011 as its director of operations, but was promoted to executive director three months later. He will leave at the end of May.
He took over after several leadership changes at the Stanley. Central New York Arts Council Executive Director Ron Thiele and Theater Manager John Faust left in 2010.
Elizabeth Tantillo then briefly served as interim executive director of the Stanley before McKissick was appointed.
The Stanley now will be seeking an interim executive director to serve until a permanent leader can be found. A timeframe for the search has not yet been determined, he said.
The Stanley went through a $20 million renovation project that was completed in 2008. The organization remains in debt from those expenditures, and attendance figures have fallen short of expectations.
In 2010, the Stanley ran a $635,015 deficit, according to federal nonprofit forms. It made $829,331 in total revenue but spent $1.48 million that year.
McKissick has said the organization had been cutting expenses and focusing more on being a rental house rather than presenting its own shows.
John Fehlner, executive director of the Broadway Theatre League, which presents performances at the Stanley, said McKissick had worked hard for the theater during difficult economic times.
“We have to continue to work together,” he said of the members of Utica’s small arts community. “He had a tough job.”
Read More Here
