TAMPA, Fla. — Straz Center president and CEO Judy Lisi announced Tuesday she will step down from the organization's leadership in September 2022.
Lisi, who joined the Tampa performing arts center in October 1992, will still continue to serve on the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center Foundation, according to a news release.
"I have had the privilege of working with an extraordinary staff and board in a wonderful community," she said to leadership. "Together we have built one of the most innovative and dynamic cultural institutions in North America and have made Tampa part of the international cultural landscape."
"I will always be grateful for the precious opportunity that I was given."
Under her leadership, the Straz Center for the Performing Arts grew to one of the largest cultural destinations in the U.S. and the largest in Florida with six theaters, outdoor performance space and more, according to the release.
She founded Tampa Opera in 1995 and, in 2004, founded the Dr. Pallavi Patel Conservatory that has become home to many educational opportunities in the arts.
Last month, the Straz Center successfully convinced Tampa to give it $25 million from the city's Community Redevelopment Area fund toward a part of its larger $80 million master plan, which will mark the largest expansion in the facility's 35-year history.
"The board, staff and the entire region applaud Judy for her vision and determination and for her 30 years of dedication to the growth of the arts in Tampa Bay. Her guidance will be missed, but her impact will not long be forgotten," Straz chairman Bill West said in a statement. "Judy’s decision to continue on through October 2022 not only gives us another year of her leadership but affords us the opportunity to launch a national search to find a worthy successor."
Lisi and her husband plan to remain in the Tampa Bay area "to spend more time traveling and entertaining together, along with the rest of their family."
