Library Staff Airs Comments and Complaints About District Librarian Gregg Atkins

The Dixon Library Commission held what turned out to be a tense special meeting on March 17 at Tremont Elementary School to evaluate the job performance of District Librarian Gregg Atkins.

The special meeting was sparsely attended, in the opinions of several audience members, because it was scheduled with only 24 hours notice posted on a bulletin board in the library.

Prior to the evaluation segment of the meeting, library employee Susan Werrin read a statement concerning an incident that occurred on Feb. 18, 2011. On that day, Byron Chapman approached her in the library, a Dixon disabled rights advocate, about the configuration of the library's handicapped-accessible restroom, according to Werrin.

Chapman had noticed that this bathroom had been converted for use as a janitor's closet. He discussed this with Werrin and left the library. Werrin said in an interview she felt she was fulfilling the information-disseminating function of her job as a library employee by discussing the bathroom with Chapman.

Atkins disagreed. According to Werrin, he reprimanded her for having the discussion with Chapman stating that only he, in his capacity as District Librarian, was mandated to speak to members of the public about any design issue – no matter how trivial – concerning the Library building.

Werrin said on Feb. 22, 2011, Atkins reprimanded her for “undermining his authority as District Librarian.” Asked in an interview about this incident and subsequent reprimand, Atkins said it was a personnel issue and therefore, legally, he was not able to comment.

Then Chapman offered his comments to the library commissioners, substantiating Werrin's account of this incident. His statement took longer than the time allotted by Library Commissioner Greta Galindo and tensions rose in the room as she rang her bell several times, but he proceeded to his conclusion.

Ginger Emerson, a longtime library patron, also offered comments concerning her perception that the prevailing social atmosphere in the library discouraged a free exchange of ideas.

“A library, of all places, should not be the exclusive domain only of ideas similar to those of the head librarian,” she stated, while staring at Atkins, who sat at the dais without looking back.

Then, the five library commissioners adjourned, rose and left the Tremont Elementary Multi-Purpose room, accompanied by Atkins. Their destination was a schoolroom in which they were to hold the closed meeting (pursuant to the Brown Act) in which Atkins's job performance was to be evaluated.

Audience member Joe Dingle, a self-described “card-carrying library patron,” made the observation as they left that it seemed odd Atkins would be able to participate in his own job performance evaluation in closed session. But soon Atkins returned to the Multi-Purpose Room and granted an interview.

He was asked about a staff meeting that had occurred on March 26, 2010, at which several library employees in the audience stated he'd read aloud a statement concerning topics, which library employees could discuss among themselves or with library patrons while they were on the job.

According to a written statement submitted to the commission by library employees Roberta Wahlberg, Jennifer Springfield, Susan Werrin, Paty Perfecto, Neil Miller, and Heather Henderson, Atkins stated at that meeting that members of the Library Commission and the Library Board of Trustees had observed that some library employees were “not showing support for the proposed new library.”

Also at the staff meeting Atkins made clear that Library staff was “not to assist patrons who had objections to the new library project.” Staff were “told not to not use the library's copier, computers or other means to assist (or) provide these patrons with any information that might not be in complete agreement with the goal to go forward with the new library project.”

Atkins concluded by stating that staff “are paid to support the plans for the new library exactly as they exist and that if we felt we could not do this that we should seek employment elsewhere.”

Since that staff meeting on March 26, 2010, three library employees have resigned, one took early retirement.

Atkins said he would reply to the staff's statement by pointing out that what staff did on their own time was fine, but that while they were on the job at the library, they could not “advocate.” Asked if by that he meant that staff could not advocate for any viewpoint other than approval of plans for the new library, Atkins stated that was a personnel matter and that, legally, he could not comment on anything in that area.

Then the library commissioners returned to the Multi-Purpose Room. The brief announcement was made that their evaluation of Atkins's job performance would continue in closed session at the next Library Commission meeting at 6pm on March 28 at a location to be announced.