SPECIAL NEEDS JOB CUTS DRAW BACKLASH
Alma Biggby Coffee faces criticism for eliminating positions held by students in program
A decision by the owners of Biggby Coffee in Alma to eliminate jobs held by special needs students has created a storm of controversy in the community.
Parents and others have taken to social media to air their complaints and support the students, who are part of the Gratiot-isabella Regional Education Service District’s Moderately Cognitively Impaired class.
Teacher Maureen Henry referred questions to RESD administrative staff.
The agreement to place students at Alma Biggby has been in place since 2014, according to RESD Associate Superintendent for Special Services Leanne Barton.
The participants are paid by the RESD and not the business itself, she explained.
“We have our own staff there with (the students) while on the job,” Barton added.
Due to how long Biggby’s had partnered with the RESD she was somewhat surprised when John and Erin Ftizgerald, who have owned the business since June, decided to end the long standing relationship.
The Fitzgerald’s also own the Biggby Coffee in St. Louis that opened early last year.
Several calls made to the Alma location on Friday and again Monday morning seeking to speak with one of the owners were each met with a busy signal.
However, they did post a response on the store’s Facebook page stating they were “confused and saddened at the most recent stories on social media.”
“We truly regret any misunderstandings we may have contributed to regarding our support of GIRESD specifically, and individuals with disabilities generally. As many of you know, we took over management of the Alma Biggby Coffee this past June and have enjoyed serving and supporting the community,” the post stated.
The owners went on to say
they were “excited to continue the collaboration” with the RESD students and had allowed them to continue to work through January.
“About two weeks ago, due to our move to the new location and in order to confirm adequate insurance should any members of the program get injured while at the store, I contacted (teacher) Maureen (Henry) and requested that we put a temporary hold on the program during the transition to the new space and given the pending insurance issue confirmation,” the post said.
The Fitzgerald’s are in the process of relocating their business from a strip mall on Wright Avenue that once housed both Jcpenney and Sears stores, across the street to a building that was most recently a fitness center.
“We look forward to exploring how we can collaborate and support individuals with disabilities at Biggby Coffee in the future,” the owner’s Facebook post concluded.
However, Sheryle Dixon, a mother of one of the 12 students who worked at Alma Biggby’s through the RESD program, wasn’t convinced it was merely a “misunderstanding.”
“The teacher had already told the owners that the RESD covered the insurance,” Dixon said “The owner knew that when they asked students to leave. The teacher called every day for three weeks with no response after the students were asked to leave.”
Dixon’s daughter is nonverbal but she was able to take inventory at the store.
“She loved to go there and she loves to be in the community,” Dixon said. “People tell me that they loved to see her and her classmates there.
Everybody was winning. Katie and her classmates learned skills, the community had a chance to socialize with a demographic that doesn’t get out in the community much and Biggby got free labor.”
Dixon also wrote a letter to the CEO of Biggby Coffee explaining what was taking place at the Alma store.
It still isn’t certain if the students will be able to continue working at Biggby after the relocation takes place.
However, there might be a bright spot in all of the swirling controversy, according to Barton. “Sometimes something good comes from things like this,” she said.
Since the student’s jobs were eliminated a number of other local businesses have contacted Henry and the RESD regarding how they can become part of the program, Barton said.
Henry is now in the process of following up with those businesses in hopes of finding another location for her students to work.