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.

FMI: www.nationalaviation.org