As the board of the Boys Choir of Harlem prepare to meet tomorrow to determine whether to expel Walter Turnbull from the group that he founded 35 years ago in the basement of a Harlem church, at least some of its members seem to be having second thoughts about whether its famous founder should be fired. Our Jacob Gershman, on Page One, quotes to this effect one of the co-chairmen of the choir that has become one of the city’s revered cultural institutions. Members of the board must either stand by Mr. Turnbull, the only leader the group has ever known, or dismiss him for failing to report to the police a student’s complaint of sexual abuse by a long-time senior counselor. We don’t envy them the decision.

It is certainly difficult to understand, let alone excuse, Mr. Turnbull’s choice to ignore the student’s complaints. It seems, albeit from a distance, that he lacked the courage to face up to the accusations against one of his longtime employees and the public scandal such accusations would likely have caused. Instead it seems he hoped that the problem would simply go away. His was a failure of leadership, as he chose to protect the institution that he created at the expense of the students that he intended it to serve.

Mr. Turnbull, 59, admits that he should have immediately contacted the police. He says he mistakenly trusted the counselor, who is now serving a twoyear prison sentence. But he has pledged to institute reforms that would prevent a lapse of judgment. He also warns about how difficult it would be to replace him. We don’t put a lot of stock in that objection; long experience teaches that most any executive can be replaced. And it is unhealthy for any organization to rest in the hands of one person and to depend on that person’s judgment for survival.

No doubt it is time for the Boys Choir of Harlem to begin the search for new leadership, but not only — or even primarily — because of the instant scandal. The choir also suffers from a $2 million debt that many say is a consequence of Mr. Turnbull’s mismanagement, though not malfeasance. If the choir is to have a long-term future, it needs to not merely deal with the present crisis but restructure itself so that no one person can so easily threaten its survival.

But we’re not entirely comfortable with the calls for Mr. Turnbull to be simply fired. He has done a titanic thing in building the Boys Choir of Harlem, and, whatever his flaws, he has stuck with it for his entire life. It does not make sense that, all of a sudden, his reputation ought to be ruined in advance of a full airing of the facts or that, in any event, his association with the choir ought to be completely severed. At the least, Mr. Turnbull can play a role in forming a national search committee that would select the choir’s next leader. And once a replacement is found, he could retain an artistic position, so his immense talents are not wasted. Though this is a period of crisis for the choir, it need not be the end of the institution.