Florida Holocaust Museum announces CEO transition

After one year as the Florida Holocaust Museum’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Carl Goodman is no longer with the organization, it was announced Tuesday in a letter from the Board of Directors.

During Goodman’s tenure, the museum was chosen to be the permanent home of the Elie Wiesel collection – including the late writer, activist and humanitarian’s Nobel prize, the entire contents of his personal office and library, unfinished manuscripts and more. The new exhibit, part of a large renovation and expansion plan, is projected to debut in 2025.

No reason was given for Goodman’s departure. “We are grateful for his warm leadership and commitment to our mission,” the letter read, “and we wish him all the best moving forward.”

The longtime director of New York’s Museum of the Moving Image, Goodman was hired by the Florida Holocaust Museum in early 2023, and officially began his tenure March 13 of that year. Deputy director Erin Blankenship had been filling in following the 2021 departure of CEO Beth Gelman.

Florida Holocaust Museum Chairman Mike Igel speaks at an Aug. 16, 2022 ceremony. Photo: Mark Parker.

Board chair Michael Igel will serve as interim CEO until Goodman’s replacement can be found. Igel has served on the board for 10 years, six as board chair, and will take on the role of interim CEO in addition to his professional position as an attorney with Johnson Pope.

Igel, whose grandparents were Holocaust survivors, said he’s excited to step up during a pivotal moment for the museum.

“A lot of the energy comes from frankly the excitement that we all in leadership at the museum are feeling right now,” Igel told the Catalyst. “Taking on this role in this moment is an example of how meaningful this is to leadership and how important we know the museum is to the world today. That’s certainly one of the attributes that we’ll be looking for [in a new CEO] moving forward.”

Josh Bomstein has been named as the new Museum Board Chair. Igel will return to the board when a new CEO is hired.

Igel said the museum will again hire help from an outside agency to aid in its nationwide search for a new CEO.

“This is such a pivotal and exciting moment, not only for the museum but for our city with all of these incredible things that the museum has in front of it. I am, and I know the board is, very hungry, eager and excited to propel the museum into its next phase. That’s where our minds and our hearts are right now,” Igel said.

“With antisemitism up 300%, this is really important for society in general, and we’re poised to knock it out of the park and continue to press our mission forward. And there’s no doubt in my mind we’re going to do that.”

The letter announcing Goodman’s departure also stated the museum hired ORIANA Solutions, a Florida-based consulting firm, to help with the museum’s operations and growth plan. Helen Levine, a well-known policy advisor and consultant in St. Petersburg and supporter of the museum, has also been tapped to aid with strategy until a new CEO takes over.