Young Photographers Alliance Announces Resignation of President and Treasurer
NEW YORK, NY —Young Photographer’s Alliance (YPA) bids farewell to some of its most prominent and important board members. President Bob Hendriks and Treasurer Deborah Free have quietly announced resignation from their positions on December 31st 2014.Free co-founded YPA with Jerry Tavin in 2009 to create opportunities that would inspire and empower young, gifted photographers. With a background in photography and agency relations, it was only natural that she utilized these well-honed skills in an educational and outreach context. Her passion and drive for the organization inspired her to create the internationally respected mentorship program, which has recently completed its fifth year, of which she has coordinated four. The resources she has supplied have had a positive impact on the photographers that have been fortunate enough to participate, facilitating rich artistic and professional experiences.Hendriks joined YPA in July 2012 first as a board member. His dedication and enterprising approach to re-shape and re-organize YPA made him the best candidate to replace Tavin as President in June 2013. Many exciting and successful events have taken place under his tutelage, including the inaugural Gala event that occurred this past November at the Morgan Library and Museum. In addition to this role, which is completely volunteer-based, Hendriks runs his own visual content production company Bob Hendriks Concepts and is managing director of In Transit Images. Rotating leadership was a concept that Hendriks felt strongly about, so as to always keep momentum within the organization. After a year and half of successful endeavors, he felt it was time to pass on the opportunity to someone new.The decision to resign from YPA has been bittersweet for Free – “It’s been a long road, with a lot of time and effort extended into creating and running YPA. Though I’ve enjoyed the journey I find myself at that stage in my life where I need to focus more on my career as well as taking care of our elderly parents, all of which will require much time and energy.”Hendriks and Free will be stay for a transitional period of two months, allowing their successors to take full control as of the end of February. Currently the positions have not been filled, but the board is in the process of determining who would be best suited to fill the very large shoes that have been left behind.Should there be any questions regarding this matter, or if there is interest in joining YPA as it embarks on a new chapter, all inquiries can be sent to info@youngphotographersalliance.org.About YPAYoung Photographers Alliance (YPA), a 501(c)3 educational foundation dedicated to developing the talent of young photographers,is a global community where young photographers connect with the inspiration, resources and contacts they need to build successful and sustainable careers as the artists and communicators of the future. The foundation brings together a wealth of industry experience through its board and membership and offers real-world knowledge, insight, experience and contacts to help students and other emerging photographers develop their artistic skills and business acumen as photography professionals. Likewise, through its programs, YPA helps established photography professionals connect with the next generation of innovative image-makers. To make initiatives such as the Mentoring Program, the YPA is always looking for supporting partners and sponsors, please contact us for further information by visiting YPA online at www.YoungPhotographersAlliance.org.