Dorr Library Director Jeffrey Babbit resigns

Jeffrey Babbitt, Dorr Library Director for the past four years, has submitted his resignation to the Dorr Township Board and Library Board, effective immediately.

He wrote in his letter, “Although I have enjoyed aspects of the job over these past nearly four years, this is not a good fit for me. I do not make enough money to support my family, and the distance from home to work is too long.”

However, he added, “If these were the only problems, I would continue… another issue has made my decision for me.

“The staff and I have not worked well together from the beginning. In particular, one member of the staff (Jennifer Chamberlain) has been hostile to me. She has at times rather aggressively kept me from helping patrons at the Circulation Desk and has told me in all but plain words that I am not welcome on the Desk. She has complained to patrons about changes I have implemented, blatantly and right in front of me.

“Ms. Chamberlain was one of three who left the Desk on the evening of June 16 to come to the (library) board meeting in the Community Room and make the public statement that they wanted the board to review my performance. Assistant Director Reilly Brower, as their spokesperson, made the demonstrably false statementthat no performance review had been done in the past four years. She complained that the staff had been cut off from giving the board feedback on the director’s comings and goings.

“This occurred just a month after I sent out a staff meeting agenda dated May 15, that drew boundaries as to when it is appropriate for staff to contact board members. I was advised to address this issue by Lakeland Co-op Director Carol Dawe, who informed me that the way staff communicated with the board was “completely inappropriate.

“Prior to that, new Vice President Gordon Lieffers had mentioned to me after the April Board meeting had adjourned that staff had been “watching you like a hawk” and had complained when I left 20 minutesearly on a Wednesday in March or early April to discuss a project with Linda Stoepker at Then and Now.

“Contrary to Ms. Brower’s claim, my performance had been reviewed by the board in 2023 and 2024. Staff had a very definite and documented say in the March 7, 2023, performance review administered by outgoing VP Brittany Hunter and incoming VP Bruce Bendull, in which they noted several legitimate flaws and mistakes of mine.

“Unfortunately, they also made the false claim that I did not spend an adequate amount of time in the library, which subsequent tracking found to be unwarranted, and they continue to make that claim even now.

“The final straw came yesterday when my family came to visit the library. They stayed there until they were asked in a disrespectful tone to leave by Jennifer’s trainee, Diane Switzer. The two young children were remarkably well behaved, and my wife Sarah encouraged and reminded them to whisper and pick up after themselves. Other children in the area were not as well behaved, but Diane chose to assume my children were the problem.

“Both Diane and Jennifer were rude to my family, letting their hostility toward me spill over onto these particular patrons. They reportedly glared at my kids, including my 12 year old daughter who was sitting and reading the entire time.

“Ms. Chamberlain does a fantastic job representing the library, serving the patrons, and training and supervising staff. However, her hostility, insubordination, and deliberate rudeness are too much for me to take. I have come to dread going to work, and the cost to my mental health is too great.

“I wish you luck finding someone suitable for the job, and I urge you to find someone with management experience who can keep Ms. Chamberlain in check.”

Babbitt took the job as library director in 2021 after he earned his master’s in library science degree from Wayne State University.

Townbroadcast has sent an e-mail to the library staff seeking a response, but has not heard back from them as yet.