For nearly 30 years, the Circus Arts Conservatory has been part of my life.
Pedro Reis and I founded what began as Circus Sarasota with a shared goal: to elevate the circus arts and present them at the highest level.
Artists, volunteers, donors and friends helped turn that vision into an organization rooted in performance, education and Sarasota’s circus heritage.
I remain enormously proud of what we built.
That is why I want to clarify what happened when my relationship with CAC ended.
I didn't want to leave
I did not resign.
CAC terminated my employment and removed me from its board.
My departure was unexpected, and it was not my choice.
I supportedJennifer Mitchell’s appointment as CEO in 2024.
After that transition, I continued serving as vice president and a board member.
Pedro’s stepping down almost two years ago did not end or alter my separate roles at CAC.
His decision and my subsequent termination were distinct events, and they should not be understood as a shared decision to leave.
But on or about June 25, 2026, I was informed that my employment was terminated, and that my board service would be “involuntarily terminated.”
I was not provided with a specific factual explanation identifying any particular incident or personal misconduct that caused CAC to terminate my employment and remove me from the board.
CAC’s written communications instead acknowledged my contributions, and it described organizational concerns involving operational structure, governance alignment and decision-making.
Those same communications recognized my “extraordinary vision, passion, and commitment” and affirmed that my influence and legacy would remain part of the organization’s identity.
I share this context because the community deserves to understand what I was told, rather than rely on speculation.
In the weeks before my termination, CAC presented me with a proposed separation agreement containing a broad release and significant confidentiality restrictions.
I was unwilling to sign an agreement that would prevent me from speaking truthfully about important events in my own life and history.
Through counsel, I requested mediation to address the situation privately and constructively before permanent action was taken.
I do not intend to answer every rumor.
Some of what I have heard is untrue, and I ask people to be cautious about repeating unsupported information.
I also ask that no anger or frustration be directed toward CAC’s staff, artists, coaches or volunteers.
Many are people I care about deeply.
They should not be placed in the middle of this situation.
My beloved parents, Lou Jacobs and Jean Rockwell Jacobs, taught me to have a kind heart, to have integrity and to be honest.
Those values have guided my life and my respect and dedication to the circus community.
I am deeply grateful to everyone who has offered kindness andsupport.
My employment and board service ended, but my commitment to the circus arts, Sarasota’s circus heritage and the artists and young people carrying that tradition forward remains as strong as ever.
Dolly Jacobs is an aerialist and an NEA National Heritage Fellow. She is the co-founder of the Circus Arts Conservatory in Sarasota.
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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Circus Arts Conservatory was my life. Then I was forced out | Opinion
