Complaint Review: Abraxas Academy Geo Group New Morgan Facility Hell

Dear fellow Abraxas Academy chattel,

This letter is not to degrade or demean the hardworking and dedicated staff who devote so much of themselves to Abraxas Academy.  Instead, it’s to highlight that while their passion, effort and personal sacrifice is highly commendable, it goes ultimately unrecognized.  My hope for the aforementioned people is that they are able to seek and attain gainful employment in an environment elsewhere that does not require the sacrificing of their own integrity or individuality, and of their precious time with loved ones.  With the exception of those individuals given special privileges, the consensus agrees that mandatory overtime and unnecessary stress due to inefficient operations is not only taxing, but a constant issue.   Employees of any organization should feel valued, respected and useful.  In recent years, many Abraxas employees have simply felt used, becoming bodies in place to fill ratios.  I am not writing this in the interest of personal gain or recognition, but rather because I possess basic humanistic values that I’d expected from members of my supposed “team.”

While many of the posts on this wonderfully useful site need no revision, several are in need of clarification. This is after all, a space which promotes the “Open Communication” policy that Abraxas has always claimed to encourage.  In reality, it does not exist within the facility.  Taking the time to rebuttal some of the posts would be a futile attempt at evoking truth and human decency.   The truth is the truth, and the brave people who knew it and were willing to expose it deserve credit.  Many of the rebuttals so far were written to protect the opportunists charged with the authority of running the facility.  They are callous, ego-driven and represent the ugly tactics of those willing to slander and defame their co-workers.  I have tirelessly attempted in the past to contribute to the development of Abraxas as a safe and pleasant environment to work.  I have lost all confidence in the facility and refuse to give anything extra without the willingness of others to reciprocate.

In hindsight, I recognize my efforts as blind ambition.  I have repeatedly tried to contact the appropriate members of upper management about my concerns.  After my attempts were met with deflection comparable to even the most manipulative politicians, I resorted to other avenues.  I subsequently wrote and mailed a letter both to Senior Vice President, Mr. Jon Swatsburg, as well as to the Department of Public Welfare.  With little effort made to correct any of the serious transgressions within the facility, I’d ruled out the notion that the Postal Service works as incompetently as those in leadership positions at Abraxas.  I’d concluded instead that Jon Swatsburg must lack the moral compass I’d assumed he possessed, or that he is so far removed from the operations of his own facility, that he has little power in assessing and correcting the complete absence of leadership and competency of those he employs.   Interesting considering his original claim.  And I quote.  “My overall vision for the organization is to be the best youth service provider in the country," I think he may need to reevaluate how close his vision was to the implementation phase of the plan.

Abraxas exists to protect and rehabilitate the ever-growing population of youth who’ve been unwillingly stricken with misfortune.  For various reasons, the majority of the kids housed here were raised in unsafe environments.  They lack guidance and are not equipped with the necessary tools and life skills to grow and evolve responsibly and ultimately, contribute to society.  While I believe that Abraxas Academy was established with the best of intentions to model those roles for our kids, that vision has clearly been lost.  It is crucial that the kids are integrated into a balanced environment designed to offer the structure that is not only necessary, but that they unknowingly crave.  In order to effectively execute this system, everyone must be aware of what to expect from their co-workers and know what is expected of them.  This begins with those in positions of authority within the facility, standing behind the original mission and modeling it.  Instead they remain inconsistent, and choose to perpetuate the cycle by only enforcing rules and structural guidelines in ways that are beneficial to themselves.  This includes keeping unfit staff on board despite poor performance and a wayward attitude toward rules.  Perhaps if the priority while recruiting potential staff was in seeking quality over quantity, this wouldn’t be such an issue.  In reference to a previous post, the recruiting process for new employees is indeed laughable.  A good recruiter should be equipped with the skills and keen insight necessary to make a calculated assessment regarding how each staff could benefit the facility.    New hires are almost never brought in for upper-management positions. This is likely to avoid the threat of an actual professional stepping in, setting standards and breaking up the core team stooges. Instead, the majority of promotions are based on cronyism, undeserved, and offered to unskilled, uneducated and unqualified individuals. There is of course the exception of one employee not promoted from within. Given that his title changes weekly, we’ll assume his strengths have yet to be identified.

 The inconsistencies among the natural order of promoting within the facility correlate directly to the inconsistencies of rule enforcement and discipline to both our staff and our residents. The lines are constantly blurred, sending inappropriate and confusing messages to all involved.  Those with less than satisfactory performance and attendance records are treated the same or with less consequence than those who are punctual, prepared and reliable. Where is the incentive for the devalued employees who are responsible and consistent?  This sends the message that it is ok to arrive chronically late and/or leave early for shifts, call out often, suffer chronic illness with no excuse or become afflicted with the most creative of injuries. Why not? No consequence.

Staff as well as residents could benefit from abiding by a simple, yet consistent plan of disciplinary action.  One characterized by a reward and punishment system based on behavior and performance.  Abraxas currently operates in stark contrast to this basic principle as evidenced above.  By far, the most fascinating way to honor unfit employees is with the creation of new positions that have elusive titles and considerable compensation in order to justify the roles of the useless individuals who offer nothing to the company.  Meanwhile, qualified individuals stuck in positions with no mobility and low compensation grow tired of the inequality, and walk out the door.  It’s bad business.  Perhaps hiring and compensating a few qualified individuals to fill positions on units in desperate need of assistance would make sense.  Instead, classes of physically incompetent and poorly trained individuals are pushed onto the floor and ultimately set up to fail.  I don’t know who this train wreck system is worse for; those with the responsibility to actually train them while on the floor, or the clueless new hire who is prepared to embrace the sanctuary model.  Perhaps it would be a better idea for the employee recruiter to focus less on her exotic dancing company and adult online foot fetish website.  I do not understand how she keeps her job aside from the obvious speculations.  I assume she took a page out of the current clinical director’s playbook of how to achieve greatness without morals.

The above inadequacies were not even among the plethora of others that I’d underscored in my initial letter to Mr. Swatsburg.  Shortly after, new issues were accumulating and are directly attributed to a circumstance of “too many chiefs.”  These issues have continued even after I’d sent my second letter 5 months later in October. Are we seeing a pattern yet?

Presently, the level of morale at Abraxas is the lowest I’ve witnessed throughout my entire tenure.  Aside from the aforementioned opportunists, a few brainwashed staff still exist and will attempt to refute these points with an empathetic pep talk.  While I commend the level of optimism still faintly alive, it is inevitably met with the undeniable facts of realism.  I certainly do not hold their ignorance against them, but certainly hope they learn to respect themselves more.  Nothing that is built on dishonesty and selfish greed is sustainable; it will ultimately crumble and those who have continually dodged accountability will resort again to placing blame.

I applaud the individuals who truly work diligently every single day to make a change in the lives of the kids they help.  It is those people who possess the same virtue, morality and values that they consistently try to instill in our residents.  Unfortunately, they are not given the incentive to maintain this type of exceptional performance, nor are they ever commended for it.  Perhaps if their senior treatment supervisors and other superiors were able to come to work once in a while, they would witness it first-hand.  The concern for even the most valuable team members begins and ends with ensuring that they are able to fill empty slots in the schedule.  This of course is a daily occurrence due to chronic short staffing and is probably the extent of effort put forth by those superiors.  After all, scrambling daily to just barely meet the minimum “body count” for the shift, ensures that they will be able to sit in their offices.  Apparently, making it to the top is defined by one’s ability to create a quick fix, then disappear into the sanctity of an office, while the teams fall apart.  Ironic that the STS’s encourage supervisors to do precisely the same thing, given their title of…. SUPERVISOR.  Naturally the best place to actively supervise and ensure better training of staff is in an office surrounded by cinderblock walls.

In previous posts, I’d chosen not to name employees specifically.  After recognizing the danger of generalizing, I’d realized credit should be given where it is due.  As such, I must first stress that not all blame can be placed on supervisors considering that even they, (the supervisors) have supervisors. Yes, supervisors supervising supervisors.  Abraxas logic 101: if it looks or sounds senseless, rest assured, it is the most likely path to be travelled.  But I digress.  It goes again back to prioritizing.  Perhaps if the priority was to adequately train people, they’d emerge with the knowledge and confidence to conduct themselves independently.  In this facility however, we reserve and award the most desirable positions to those with the least amount of knowledge and capability.   ……Senseless.

I particularly feel for the operations staff who take pride in their work and are not fairly compensated due to the immensely uneven distribution of pay in the building.  Staff such as, Cooper, Duffy, L. Smith, Diaz, Keese, Winchester, Dease, and Bumbulsky are examples of exemplary employees who go above and beyond daily and are not appreciated, or properly compensated.  Instead, ridiculous salaries are allocated to STS’s who not only work the least, but take zero accountability for their actions.  American side of the building is supposed to have Mr. Steve Brown to oversee any operations issues, but his blatant racism precedes him.  This prevents him from actually inflicting change within the facility.  There is the possibility that he is secretly a genius, but actions and results speak volumes. Although Mr. Cox is only responsible for half of a unit, he is the most reliable and competent STS in the facility.  He relies on Ms. Ebersole for the day to day supervision.  Interesting that Ms. Ebersole spends most of her time on light duty doing busy work as a consequence for actually doing her job and holding kids accountable.   Most of the other staff on light duty use it as a vacation or simply time to milk their fictitious injuries. 

Ms. Jacobs stepped into her position convincing staff for a while that she was capable of making her unit safe and implementing real change on it.  Ms. Knott was appointed her day to day supervisor but she proved incapable and quit.  Mr. Murray is a too superficial in that he makes sure things appear great, but the opposite is clear to anyone with common sense.  His ego overshadows his abilities as an effective supervisor.  Mr. Lewis was promoted in true abraxas fashion; Out of complete necessity.  He comes and goes as he pleases and rarely puts in his full shift.  He spends most of his day sitting with staff in his office while trying to show off his machismo.  Staff can do whatever they please, as long as they validate him and keep his ego inflated.  The unit is still the same as it ever was.  Staff still bring in food, drinks, cell phones and even alcohol for the residents.  I assume contraband like this isn’t a serious issue in comparison to the prior year when Ms. Shoup, Ms. Mitchell and Ms. George were having sexual relationships with multiple residents or residents having all out riots and staff getting seriously injured. Quite frankly, we house illiterate residents incapable of articulating full sentences who would make better supervisors than the shelter unit roster.  That unit is a daily embarrassment.  Please bring back Ms. Sexton.  Even as an alcoholic stumbling around her unit she did a better job than most …when she was present. 

While shelter is constantly problematic, it brings in the most revenue for Abraxas. The unit has become unmanageable, because its original purpose has been overlooked in the interest of making more money.  Shelter was originally designed to offer kids with familial and emotional hardships an opportunity to progress and find success without the confines of locked rooms of a disciplinary setting.  What has manifested is an open door unit that houses  emotionally challenged , as well as those with behavioral issues; a dangerous combination.  The line staff on the unit are not nearly qualified or motivated enough to be responsible for the residents there.  Considering that everyone is aware of Ms. Johns’ work ethic, it is surprising that she is even aware of how many residents are present.  She may benefit from taking a more authoritative stance, in lieu of the “friend” role.  As for Ms. Khan, she’d be wise to return to a TL position on a unit she’s able to control.  After having been reprimanded and relocated multiple times for various indiscretions, it is astounding that Ms. Garl is still employed. Perhaps this may be attributed to a questionable relationship with an unnamed supervisor.  I could continue to elaborate on the character flaws of other staff, but it is not my intention to expose their personal faults.  It is my only wish that they could separate their personal lives from their profession.  

While the Detention supervisors are in some ways the most diverse group, the mixture of their personalities can be detrimental.  Mr. Barnhill has a great relationship with the residents and an innate ability to communicate with them in a manner that astounds most.  If he were predominantly focused on that aspect, and not on sexually harassing all of the female staff, he would have superior judgment.  For instance, pushing for Ms. McKenzie to become a supervisor based on his own ulterior motives instead of on her job performance, limits his credibility.  This however, is just another example of those willing to trade their own moral dignity in exchange for job security.   Professional ethics are an issue throughout abraxas, but particularly relate to the treatment supervisors, Mr. Barnhill and Mr. Butler.  It is advisable for female staff to request to work a unit that these two are not responsible for or involved in.  The exceptions of course, as aforementioned, are those interested in advancing within the company with little to no effort.  Those expecting to learn anything about juvenile justice and treatment will inevitably be disappointed and doomed to fail.

Mr. Gaither as far as I am aware, is still the detention STS despite his complete lack of control.  His ability to remain absent with no accountability or consequence is puzzling. It is further confusing considering that he manages to operate a unit that is notorious for staff assaults, with no precautions to prevent or curb it in the future.  The unit houses residents who receive the worst care in the facility.  They constantly share soiled clothing marked with bodily fluid stains.  The residents are moved from room to room without any type of cleaning or disinfecting.  This includes residents with communicable diseases and bodily vermin.  The sanitary issues within Abraxas have always been astounding, but recently Abraxas has formed a Safety & Infectious Control Committee.  This “think-tank” committee has been charged with addressing any safety issues or concerns in the building and have asked that any concerns be brought directly to the Quality and Compliance Technician.  I applaud this groundbreaking idea, seeing as how I addressed these safety and sanitary issues almost a year ago and nothing was changed.  This is just another way Abraxas excels at bandaging a situation on the surface, but never implementing a true remedy.  This begs the question: who is actually in charge of day to day operations and how can so many staff operate with such impunity? 

Over the course of writing this letter with both disappointment and hope, I was overwhelmed with the notion that this final decree may serve to help the deserving and expose those uninterested in genuinely rehabilitating the less fortunate.  Currently, day-to-day operations consist of solutions and problem-solving based on Band-Aids and quick fixes. I honestly believe that unless corporate managers are able to wipe the slate clean and rebuild with the proper oversight, the outlook of the facility is bleak. There are hardworking people who in good faith support the population of misguided youth while living paycheck to paycheck.  Hopefully Mr. Swatsburg is able to realize that they deserve more, and separate fact from fiction.  If he is unwilling or incapable of making much needed changes, then it will be clear where the source of the problem lies. 

When it becomes clear to you that we are all just vessels and chattel within a dysfunctional facility, my only advice is to reflect on your own values.  Contemplate if your employment is worth your labor.  Consider whether you have accomplished the goals that you set in those first weeks of training.  If like most, you feel unappreciated and precarious in your career, then make the difficult decision to change your situation.  One day when all the cover-ups and abuse catch up with Abraxas, will deteriorate, and become a distant memory to those who realized their self-worth.  To those who continue to perpetuate these fallacies, the nightmare will continue and your feigned efforts will be exposed. 

-LTD