PRINCETON: Arts Council eliminates two jobs

By Lauren Otis, Staff Writer
  The souring economy has hit the Arts Council of Princeton.
   Faced with a significant deficit, and the need for immediate cost reductions, the Arts Council has eliminated two staff positions, resulting in the departure of Robyn Raskin, the ACP’s development/membership manager, and Carmen Ramos, ACP curator of exhibitions.
   The layoffs were announced by Arts Council Executive Director Jeff Nathanson in a message posted on the ACP Web site.
   ”In this difficult economy, businesses and non-profit organizations alike are being forced to make very tough decisions. As you can imagine the Arts Council is not immune to the challenges of the national economic crisis,” Mr. Nathanson said in the message.
   ”The ACP’s Finance and Executive Committees have analyzed our financial situation and have determined that we must take immediate action to correct a projected six figure deficit,” Mr. Nathanson said. “We assure you that these cuts, difficult as they are, are necessary for the financial well-being of the organization,” he said.
   In addition to eliminating the two staff positions, Mr. Nathanson said the Arts Council is launching a campaign “to raise funds we urgently need.”
   For the year ended June 2008, the ACP had operating income of $797,675 and operating expenses of $746,489, according to its annual report.
   In June 2008 the ACP opened the doors of its new Michael Graves-designed home on the corner of Paul Robeson Place and Witherspoon Street after a lengthy $10.3 million construction, refurnishing and relocation process. At the time, the organization still needed to raise $2 million to offset this cost, with the goal of doing so through 2010, according to its annual report.