CEO HOLDING DOWN FAC DURING SEARCH FOR DIRECTOR
Mark Arnest
The Gazette – Colorado Springs, Colorado – KRTBN
Published: Aug 27, 2007
Fine Arts Center officials announced this morning that they had hired
Jon Stepleton as acting chief executive officer.
Stepleton, a former editor and associate publisher at The Gazette and
current Pikes Peak Community College Foundation executive director,
will occupy the temporary position until the end of September while
the center searches for an interim director.
When the interim director is in place, the center will begin its
national search for a permanent replacement for outgoing president
and CEO Michael De Marsche.
De Marsche announced his resignation Aug. 9, days after the center’s
gala reopening ceremonies. He’s accepted a job as executive director
of the Cafesjian Museum Foundation in Yerevan, Armenia, where he will
oversee the museum’s expansion.
Stepleton, a Fine Arts Center Board of Trustees member, served as
interim CEO for eight months in 2003, after the resignation of the
center’s CEO David Turner.
Stepleton said there’s "a universe of difference" between the
organization then and now.
"The transformation of the Fine Arts Center is utter and complete,"
he said.
"There’s a sense of possibility that didn’t exist in 2003. And we
have two years of programming in place, which wasn’t the case then."
He said his job is to help maintain the momentum the center generated
under De Marsche.
"I’m not sure there’s ever been a deeper reservoir of passion for the
Fine Arts Center than there is today," he said. "We’ll tap that to
make sure that this new vision for the center resonates for a long,
long time."