The New York City-based James Beard Foundation has announced that it is separating its awards program from the rest of the organization, which is struggling to recover from a recent financial scandal, the New York Times reports.

The changes were demanded by members of the restaurant awards committee, who refused to participate in the competition otherwise. As a result, according to a statement released by the committee, no trustee or staff member of the foundation will be allowed to participate in the awards process, and its finances will be autonomous.

Several prominent journalists on the restaurant awards committee resigned when it was determined that Leonard Pickell, Jr., the organization's former president, had misused organizational funds (he was later indicted). Others started an effort to separate the awards from the foundation in order to preserve their integrity. The organization promotes American food and chefs, and its awards for restaurants, designers, food writers, and broadcasters are highly prized.

The awards will remain a program under the banner of the foundation, so "the separation may be a linguistic dance," said Joseph Crea, food and restaurants editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and chairman of the foundation's journalism award committee. "But it's important that we have a clear declaration of autonomy."