- July 3, 2021
- Posted by: Stratford Team
- Category: Business
PITTSFIELD — Jeff Rodgers originally intended to go to law school. But, after a short stint teaching in New York City after college, a colleague helped him get a job at the American Museum of Natural History, and a new career path was born.
It led Rodgers to the Berkshire Museum, where he became the executive director in 2019. But, he arrived after one of the most tumultuous times in the venerable institution’s history.
Starting in 2017, his predecessor, Van Shields, spearheaded an effort to sell up to 40 pieces of art from the museum, a move that community members fought through lawsuits and protests. Ultimately, a Supreme Judicial Court justice approved a plan backed by Attorney General Maura Healey to allow the museum to raise $55 million. The sale of 22 works brought the museum $53.25 million.
As intended, the move secured the museum’s financial future — and $3.5 million of the art sale proceeds is being spent on…
