The Great Neck Library Board of Trustees voted to conduct an independent investigation after a letter from an anonymous employee alleged Director Denise Corcoran has fostered a “toxic and fearful work environment” amid other accusations.
The letter, addressed to the Great Neck Library Board of Trustees, says the author wanted to be anonymous due to fear of retaliation.
The current employee said this toxic culture has persisted throughout Corcoran’s tenure, both when she was initially hired in 2018 before leaving in 2019 and again when she returned in 2021. But they said the culture has worsened since she rejoined the library.
Blank Slate Media spoke with two anonymous individuals, one a current library employee and another who no longer working there. Blank Slate Media confirmed that they both have been or are employed by the library.
The anonymous employee still working at the library, with whom Blank Slate Media spoke, wrote the letter. They said it was based on personal experiences and what other employees shared with them.
The letter was sent to the board of trustees, which later voted at a special meeting Thursday night to conduct an independent investigation.
The employee who penned the letter said its purpose is to bring awareness to the board about how much power the director has and what she contends is causing abuse and a toxic work environment.
Efforts to solicit comment from Library Director Corcoran and Assistant Director Kathryn Baumgartner were unavailing. Board President Rory Lancman declined to comment on the letter.
The letter included complaints against Corcoran and the library, including hiring underqualified employees, preferential treatment and larger raises to administrators, secret meetings to keep Corcoran after she resigned last fall, and failure to deliver on a promised diversity audit.
The employee called the culture “demoralizing” for staff as certain employees are favored in hiring and higher-ups receive greater raises.
Both sources said staff shortages have plagued the library, exacerbated by turnover they attributed to the work environment and inability to advance.
The current employee said the staff feels disposable due to a lack of personal connections. The former employee said Corcoran mostly interacts with staff in negative moments, like when members are being reprimanded.
The former employee described the library work environment as a “culture of fear” and “sterile” due to the administration.
“They feel that they are underpaid, understaffed and treated poorly,” the former employee said.
The letter also alleges that after Corcoran received a new contract in the fall, a job posting for assistant director was revised to lower the requirements. This posting was for an internal-only hire.
The letter says this was done to make assistant director Baumgartner eligible to apply, along with other alterations to the hiring process.
Library patron Rebecca Gilliar, who was named in the letter, described Baumgartner’s hiring as one of nurturing executive succession by employing a young assistant director to train her to assume the director role someday. She said this is common with other libraries.
The letter also claims Baumgartner fosters a negative work environment, alleging she has a history of scolding staff.
The anonymous employee alleges Baumgartner’s treatment led to multiple employees leaving the Parkville Branch while she was serving as branch head.
“Rewarding her with the assistant director position has demoralized the staff tremendously,” the letter says. “Denise and Kathryn are two peas in a pod. They are identical in their cold treatment of staff.”
The letter also claims that Baumgartner was involved in interviews that led to the hiring of her friend.
The letter also says library patron Gilliar has been made privy to private information at the library and criticized her correspondence with library employees.
Gilliar said she has been a library patron for 55 years and has “[watched] the patterns and [listened] to the words.”
“The letter writer who intends me harm is in hiding (wearing camouflage and taking aim from a crouched position) and therefore deserves no reply,” Gilliar wrote to Blank Slate Media.
The letter writer said the issue would be resolved if Corcoran was no longer director but said they see this as unlikely.
“For this place to ever change, she’s got to go,” the current employee said. “I think that would be the thing that could really, hopefully, get staff morale back up, but I don’t see it happening.”
The former employee said change could also be achieved if the administration had greater and more positive engagement with staff, but also said they didn’t think it would happen.
Gilliar cautioned against the anonymous letter due to the harm it could cause the library.
“The post is intended to push the board into making a hurried decision to investigate the library director, thereby bringing the library to a standstill,” Gilliar wrote, referencing a social media post about the topic. “Given the current lineup of newcomers and ill-wishers that comprise the current library board majority, I expect they will act to the detriment of the library.”
