Ivy Barsky the CEO of the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia will be resigning from her post at the end of June.
Barsky replaced Michael Rosenzweig as CEO in 2012, shortly after the museum opened in its new location adjacent to Independence Mall. Under her leadership, the NMAJH began a new educational program based on its main exhibit, and created new exhibitions on topics ranging from composer Leonard Bernstein to Jewish people in baseball.
Although the NMAJH welcomed 100,000 visitors in 2017 and was ranked by visitphilly.com as the city’s 30th most popular tourist destination, the museum’s performance in recent years has not met projections. The number of visitors, donors, and members for the past nine years have all been below expectations. However, the NMAJH is not alone in these problems. Many cultural institutions in the region have experienced a downturn since the 2008 recession.
Barsky’s successor has not been named yet. Dr. Misha Galperin, president of ZANDAFI Philanthropy Advisors, will step in as interim leader and help the museum’s board plan for the transition to a new CEO.
In a statement, Ivy Barsky said “It has been a great privilege to lead our Museum that does what no other museum in this country does — uniquely preserving and interpreting American Jewish history.”