1. How long have you been working as a custodian? What brought you to this position?

I was a housekeeper, at Schowalter Villa, for 5 years and have been a custodian with USD 373 for 5 1/2 years. 

I decided to do custodial work after having worked retail for years. When working retail, you rarely get holidays and weekends off. As a housekeeper or custodian I was able to not only have holidays and weekends off, with pay, but with the district I am able to accrue leave. Vacation and personal time allows for me to spend quality time with my family. Most of which live in the North East. 

2. What are the challenges of being a custodian at a school? What are the benefits?

The physical duties most usually are the most challenging . They are safety hazards, slips and falls, the use of chemicals, heavy lifting, and blood borne pathogens. All of which can put us at risk. 

Some custodians may feel unappreciated or as if they don't make enough money to do what they do. Some may also feel over worked or burnt out, when they are needed to cover due to not enough staff. 

To me, the benefit of being a custodian is knowing that what I do makes for a safe and clean environment for the students and staff. We may not always feel like we are noticed, but in the end we know that what we do makes a huge difference. Nothing drove that home more than COVID. That was the most scary thing I have ever had to deal with. To know that you were responsible for so many people, to keep illness bay, was worrisome. I am incredibly proud of all of our custodians and those who lead us in getting through that very trying time. 

3. What has been a particularly memorable experience as a custodian? 

I would have to say that one of my particularly memorable experiences was working on the transformation of the high school hallways and auditorium. So rewarding to see the fruits of our labors and the reactions, of everyone, when they came back for the school year. There was incredible amount of teamwork those couple of summers.