Camillus House CEO resigns after dispute with leadership

Less than two years after taking the helm of Camillus House, CEO Shed Boren formally resigned his post this week amid allegations of improper management and a bitter dispute with longtime board chairman Bob Dickinson.

A severance agreement signed by Boren and Dickinson ends Boren’s dual role as head of both Camillus House, a top Miami homeless shelter, and Camillus Health, an affiliated provider of medical services to homeless residents. The contract, signed Monday, pays Boren $250,000 over the next year in exchange for agreeing not to publicly criticize Camillus House leadership and remove social-media posts he published shortly after his Sept. 30 suspension over allegations he created a hostile workplace.

In remarks before Camillus Health board members, Boren said his ouster stemmed from a dispute with Dickinson over arrangements the former Carnival Cruise Line CEO has with the charity he leads as the volunteer board chairman. Camillus pays an employee to provide secretarial services for Dickinson and rents storage space across the street from its Miami shelter in a building co-owned by Dickinson.

Dickinson has not publicly responded to Boren’s comments, and last week was named the unpaid acting CEO of Camillus House.

Camillus House announced Boren’s resignation in a press release Tuesday, with Dickinson described as continuing his role as acting CEO of Camillus House and Monsignor Gabe Ghanoum, chairman of Camillus Health’s board, taking over as acting CEO of that organization.

“Both Camillus organizations thank Dr. Boren for his service and wish him the best in future endeavors,” the release said. Both Dickinson and Ghanoum are temporarily giving up their board positions while the two entities begin what the release described as separate hiring processes to replace Boren at both non-profits.

The severance agreement, obtained by the Miami Herald, required Boren to resign his CEO posts at both organizations. His resignation at Camillus House took effect Saturday, and his Camillus Health resignation takes effect Oct. 26. The agreement includes a $250,000 penalty if Boren violates the requirement that he not disparage Camillus or its staff, volunteers or donors.

As part of the deal, Boren must delete a Facebook post he published hours after news of his Sept. 30 suspension became public. Describing his suspension as a “horrible setback,” Boren wrote “it is a shame our energy is diverted from doing our work.” The next day, Dickinson mentioned the Facebook post in an email to board members, saying “it appears that Mr. Boren has taken it upon himself to broadcast his version of events in many parts of the community through social media and other communications.”

The severance agreement requires Boren not to discuss his departure beyond a prepared statement that thanks Dickinson by name. The prepared statement reads: “I wish to express my gratitude to the Camillus staff and Boards of Directors and Camillus House Chairman Bob Dickinson and Camillus Health Chair Monsignor Gabe Ghanoum for their tireless support on behalf of the poor and homeless in our community.” It was included in the Camillus House release issued Tuesday.

The contract shows Dickinson signing for both Camillus House and Camillus Health, with him noting his signature for the health provider was on behalf of Ghanoum, chairman of Camillus Health.

Boren, a former hospital administrator, started at Camillus House in January 2015, six months after taking the top job at Camillus Health. It’s not known how much he earned as head of both nonprofits. Tax records covering his first year at Camillus Health but just six months at Camillus House show him earning $160,000 combined in the 12 months that ended June 30, 2015. His predecessor at Camillus House, Paul Ahr, earned $321,000 in his final year at the nonprofit, according to tax records.

This post was updated to correct a reference to the acting CEO of Camillus Health; it is Monsignor Gabe Ghanoum.

This story was originally published October 18, 2016 at 1:00 PM with the headline "Camillus House CEO resigns after dispute with leadership."