Lloyd Jassin, chairman of the executive committee and the advisory counsel of the New York Center for Independent Publishing (NYCIP), has resigned from his posts at the organization, Publishers Weekly reported. Jassin announced his departure on Tuesday in a letter to members of the counsel, stating that his vision for the center and that of the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesman (GSMT), the NYCIP's funding organization, were at odds.
The move follows the dismissal in February of NYCIP executive director Karin Taylor, who was laid off due to budget cuts. Former assistant director Leah Schnelbach currently runs the center as its sole employee, with the aid of volunteers.
Jassin wrote in his letter that he and GSMT president Daniel Walkowitz had addressed staffing matters in a series of discussions on policy issues and the future of the NYCIP, in which they also spoke about the job of GSMT executive director Clive Beasley. "The position of the executive director of the GSMT requires a visionary leader who can promote an organizational culture and structure that fosters cooperation, communication, teamwork and trust between the center's volunteers and the overall publishing community," Jassin wrote of his views on the role. "I have come to the conclusion that my vision for the center and that of the General Society executive committee ... are incompatible."
Publishers Weekly reported in February that, following Taylor's departure, Beasley said that his goal was to unify the GSMT and the NYCIP's executive and advisory committees, several member of which resigned after Taylor was fired, in order to resolve financial issues and develop programming, stating that the society is committed to "keeping independent voices alive."
