Investigation says Shorewood Library dysfunction caused by employees resisting leadership
Over the past year, several Shorewood Public Library clerks, administrators, librarians and library board trustees have left or been removed from their positions amid complaints of a hostile working environment.
An investigation into these complaints by the Wisconsin-based firm von Briesen & Roper concluded that the library's "current dysfunction is a direct product of library employees actively resisting" former library director Jen Gerber's leadership, according to the investigation findings released Jan. 9.
But some former staff members and board members called the investigation one-sided, missing key perspectives and clarifications that show Gerber contributed to the hostile workplace environment.
Doll burned in 'cathartic' event, investigation says
While von Briesen & Roper did not identify conditions reaching an actionable level of harassment on either side, the firm tells a narrative of some staff members' insubordination, evidenced by routine end-around discussions about Gerber, challenges to Gerber's directives and her experience of a “hostile” workplace.
The investigation said months of this resistance culminated in an incident on Sept. 22, 2023, where Gerber and two other supportive staff members decided to burn a former staff member's childhood doll she accidentally left at her desk as a "'cathartic' event, considering the stressors associated with the workplace."
The Shorewood Police Department said no laws were broken, but six staff members at the Shorewood Library filed a workplace safety grievance Sept. 25 recounting the incident ― substantiated by video evidence obtained by the Journal Sentinel ― and calling it, “a product of the toxic culture cultivated and fostered by director Jen Gerber throughout her tenure as Director,” the grievance said. “The product of this action is a further divided, toxic, and unsafe workplace culture with no resolution in sight.”
Gerber announced her resignation on Oct. 12, saying the Shorewood Public Library Board’s lack of confidentiality in discussing her actions with unsupportive staff undermined her leadership and threatened the staff’s ability to function.
Eight openings remain at the library
On Oct. 18, the village board voted to remove two of the seven library board members, including Donna Whittle and former Board President Alexandra Dimitroff. The board said they'd lost confidence in Dimitroff's ability to effectively steer the direction of the library board and said Whittle had mishandled agendas according to Wisconsin open meetings laws. A few days later, another library board member, Ling Meng resigned.
At a Jan. 10, 2024, library board meeting, interim library director Hayley Johnson said there are currently eight openings at the library they are working on filling.
Attached to the investigation document are augmentations submitted by Whittle and Dimitroff, criticizing and refuting aspects of von Briesen & Roper's findings and techniques.
Wisconsin state law allows persons appearing in a record who are employees or officials of the entity releasing the record to have the ability to "augment" the record and have it be released with the original document.
Whittle and Dimitroff both said the firm didn't interview people with key insight into the dysfunction, including many of the librarians and clerks who have resigned in recent months.
Interviews conducted by the Journal Sentinel with some of the staff members who did participate in the investigation paint a more nuanced picture than the one von Briesen & Roper drew.
Lizzie Hjelle, a former clerk at the Shorewood library and one of the six staff members who filed the workplace safety grievance against Gerber, said the investigation findings presented a totally different situation than the one she and her co-complainants experienced and relayed to investigators.
What did the investigation say?
In mid-October, after receiving multiple complaints regarding the library’s workplace environment, Shorewood's village board initiated the investigation into the library and hired von Briesen & Roper to conduct it.
The firm's investigation involved interviewing 13 current and recently-departed staff members, as well as reviewing email correspondences, internal memoranda, library board minutes and a few written statements submitted by the former library board trustees.
The investigation shows three complaints were submitted to the village board:
The first complaint submitted by former director Jen Gerber against the library board is based on claims described as "illegal meetings, unethical practices, ruining workplace culture," according to the investigation.
The second complaint described identically to Gerber's was submitted by Administrative Assistant Angela Andre, Joan Stroika and staff member Carolyn Curran.
The third complaint, described as "burning of item outside of library," is based on the doll-burning incident involving Gerber, Andre and interim director Hayley Johnson.
According to the investigation, the discontent started in December 2022, five months after Gerber was hired as library director. Former assistant library director Emily Vieyra ― whose doll Gerber would eventually participate in burning ― disagreed with Gerber's desire to overhaul the existing staffing model and began contacting library board members "outside the scope and duties of the assistant director" about Gerber's management of the library.
The investigation does not mention that the object burned was Vieyra's childhood doll or that some staff believed the action violated a village ordinance against burning combustible materials within 100 feet of buildings and library workplace safety rules.
Multiple staff members witnessed the relationship between Gerber and Vieyra deteriorate, including Vieyra's insubordination and disrespectful treatment of Gerber, until Vieyra's resignation in May of 2023, according to the investigation.
When contacted by the Journal Sentinel, Vieyra declined to comment but confirmed that she was never contacted for the investigation. Von Briesen & Roper attorney Mark Kapocius said he was not authorized to comment on why Vieyra and other current and former employees named in the investigation were not contacted.
Investigators said Dimitroff directed the board to take "an adverse position towards Gerber," evidenced by a performance review in September 2023 that read, "the board is deeply concerned about the challenges posed by current staffing levels and morale.”
Investigators said the performance review was "inconsistent" with the previous performance review from March 2023, which was characterized as generally positive. However, the investigation does not mention that a large portion of the March 2023 review also contained areas in need of improvement.
In her augmentation, Dimitroff said over half the review pertains to the need for working on relationship building, communication with the board and lack of engagement, which she said Gerber did not address between the performance reviews.
Board meetings violated open meetings laws, investigation says
Between August and October of 2023, frequent library board meetings included closed sessions, which were not given proper public notice or statutory citations as required by Wisconsin open meetings laws, according to the investigation.
During this same period of time, multiple witnesses said several staff members took an openly adversarial position toward Gerber, verbally challenging her directives.
"Through this dynamic, employees may have been empowered to believe they do not fall within the chain-of-command every functional organization must have," Von Briesen & Roper said. "From the perspective of Jen Gerber, each effort she made to lead was met with greater resistance, and eventually led to her resignation from the Library."
Investigation fails to mention 'yelling, bullying, belittling' of employees, Dimitroff said
However, Dimitroff noted in her augmentation that the investigation does not mention that many employees who were unsupportive of Gerber described her "yelling, bullying, belittling, excluding and embarrassing library employees" in their complaint.
Hjelle said she resigned in late October from her “dream job” at the Shorewood Library after she heard Gerber might be reinstated as director after Gerber requested the library board rescind her resignation.
While the board ultimately did not reinstate Gerber, Hjelle said Gerber's behavior “became increasingly erratic and volatile over the course of the last year to the point where it was a really hostile work environment for anyone who had a difference of opinion with her or anyone who asked a question about any decisions that she made."
Many working to keep the library's services running
Since September, the village has spent almost $16,000 in professional fees to von Briesen & Roper for library-related consultations, according to village invoice accounts.
Amid the dysfunction and vacancies, a number of village staff and board members have stepped up to help keep the library's services running and to help implement new policies such as the elimination and forgiveness of almost $24,000 in library fines accrued since 1995.
Over the past several months, the library board, comprised of volunteers dedicated to the library and Shorewood community, held frequent meetings to carve out a path for the library's success. The village board also has devoted several special meetings to the issues.
Acting Library Board President Jonathan Smucker said he and village officials have been meeting regularly to collaborate on solutions.
At the Jan. 10 library board meeting, Johnson described the tireless efforts of remaining staff members who have taken on extra hours and demonstrated flexibility in handling new tasks while the library works on filling the vacancies.
Johnson said the library would close Jan. 25 for a professional development day for staff to move forward.
Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @levensc13
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Findings released in Shorewood Library workplace investigation
