Alison Scholly
Alison Scholly is stepping down as chief operating officer at Chicago Public Media — nine months after she was passed over for the top job at the parent company of WBEZ FM 91.5.
Scholly, 46, who has held the COO position since June 2010, told colleagues Friday she plans to leave at the end of the month.
“As for what’s next for Alison, she’s still considering many different options and is looking forward to ‘her next adventure.’ ” Goli Sheikholeslami, president and CEO of Chicago Public Media, told staffers in a memo. “I will personally miss her endless energy and consistent enthusiasm, but she will continue to live in Chicago and therefore I expect her to be a regular at all WBEZ/Vocalo events.”
Since Sheikholeslami’s appointment last spring, insiders speculated that Scholly would be stepping down sooner or later. Scholly had served as interim CEO following Torey Malatia’s departure in July 2013, and was identified among the finalists for the job.
There are no plans to fill Scholly’s position, Sheikholeslami said.
Scholly joined Chicago Public Media after 14 years at Tribune Co., where her roles included editor of Metromix.com and vice president of interactive operations and development at Chicago Tribune Media Group.
Here is the text of Sheikholeslami’s memo to the staff:
Team
From my first months here at CPM I knew that at some point I might have to send you this email and now the day has arrived. I wanted to let all of you know that Alison Scholly has decided to leave Chicago Public Media at the end of this month.
As COO, Alison Scholly has been an integral part of Chicago Public Media for almost five years. She joined the institution in the early days of recovery from “the great recession” and found solutions for continued innovation and growth while most media organization were contracting dramatically. Alison brought in a fresh perspective and ushered a unified direction for the organization while still maintaining our creative, passionate journalistic mission. Her leadership helped Chicago Public Media transition to a position of broader respect within the public radio system and greater public service in Chicago that will continue to expand in the coming years.
Alison has been a great partner to me since my arrival in May and having her here has allowed me to get up to speed knowing that the core operations of the business were well-tended to. She has patiently explained the many nuances of our business and accelerated my understanding of the public media industry. Our colleagues tell me that when Alison joined CPM, she quickly earned respect for her dogged ability to push Chicago Public Media to perform at its best, mastering the many details of a complex media organization while being a personal coach, friend and mentor to many. I am very grateful to Alison for all that she has done for me, personally, and more importantly, for this institution.
As for what’s next for Alison, she’s still considering many different options and is looking forward to “her next adventure.” I will personally miss her endless energy and consistent enthusiasm, but she will continue to live in Chicago and therefore I expect her to be a regular at all WBEZ/Vocalo events.
Please join me in thanking Alison for her years of service and stay tuned for details on her celebration event!
Goli