On September 25, the Washington State Parks Commission voted unanimously to begin the process of finding and selecting a nonprofit organization to pursue management and operations of the planned life-long learning center at Fort Worden.

Today, Centrum announced its intention to submit a Letter of Interest to Washington State Parks to begin negotiations about options for nonprofit management.

Thatcher Bailey will resign as Centrum’s Executive Director, effective November 15, to assemble a task force—including Centrum Board members Cindy Hill Finnie and John Begley—which will develop this application. Bailey will work as a consultant to Centrum through this process.

"This is a moment of extraordinary opportunity for Fort Worden, the local community, and the region," says Centrum Board President, Libby Reid. "We are deeply excited by the new vision for Fort Worden and want to play a role in building a partnership economy that serves and benefits all resident partners and users of the Park along with the local community."

The Centrum Board has begun a search to replace Bailey as Executive Director. In the meantime, Kisha Palmer will take charge of staff and day-to-day operations as Managing Director. "We remain 100% committed to strengthening and diversifying Centrum’s core programs," explains Reid. "We are extremely fortunate that Kisha is in place as we move through this next phase of Centrum’s evolution."