Five of the 15 volunteer board members of the Bainbridge Island Arts & Humanities Council have left the organization.

According to Barbara Sacerdote, the council’s executive director, not one of the as-yet-unidentified departing members left out of anger.

She had previously told another newspaper that internal disagreements among the board began in 2011 when the council lost city funding in the amount of $300,000, and ideas of how to adjust and proceed differed.

“I would just say that we had to make changes in the way we operate,” Sacerdote said.

“The organization had to change the way it manages itself and governs itself,” she said. “We didn’t change who we serve and we didn’t change our programs, but we had to change the way we do things internally and there’s always differences of opinion as to how things should be managed and governed. That’s natural.”

Sacerdote said the loss of five members has not affected the daily operations of the council “at all.”

Regarding the regularity of board members, who typically serve three-year terms, leaving in groups, Sacerdote said it is not unheard of.

“I can’t speak to that,” she said. “People who all come on together, when their time is up, they leave as groups.”

Sacerdote said that there were currently no plans for any sort of recognition or farewell event for the departing members.

“We don’t usually do that,” she said.

The council is currently engaged in a recruitment process and looking to fill the roles of the departed members.

“This happens in business all the time,” she said. “Nonprofits are not as nimble as businesses are. We’re accountable to many different groups of people. A business is only accountable to its shareholders. We’re accountable to the people we serve and our funders. We’re accountable to the whole community.”

Anyone interested in learning more about the council and its programs, or to be considered for a position on the board, can call Sacerdote for more information at 206-842-7901.