Schools run, in part, on the elbow grease of custodians, the gentle nudge of a crossing guard, and the encouraging smile of a paraprofessional and teacher鈥檚 assistant silently indicating to a student that, 鈥淵es, you鈥檝e got this.鈥�
But these support staffers frequently toil in the background, rarely getting the thanks or recognition they deserve.
鈥淭hey are far too often forgotten and underappreciated for what they do,鈥� said Kevin Armstrong, the principal of DuPont Hadley Middle School in Nashville, Tenn.
鈥淧ost-COVID, when people are finding it really hard to find good people, I think it really shined a light on support staff and folks like that in our buildings, because we realized how important they are,鈥� Armstrong said.
We took for granted that we would always have a cafeteria manager, or always have a crossing guard, or always have a paraprofessional, always have custodians,鈥� he continued. 鈥淧ost-COVID, people had options and chose to do other things, and there was not a long line of people behind them to replace them. So we definitely appreciate them.鈥�
In honor of Thanksgiving, we asked a few principals, including Armstrong, to give a shoutout to one worker (not including an administrator or teacher) who makes their school run.
Miguel Ribera and Ana Gil, custodians, DuPont Hadley Middle School, Nashville, Tenn.
Armstrong can鈥檛 stop raving about Miguel Ribera and Ana Gil, the husband-and-wife team who took over the school鈥檚 janitorial services in July, three weeks before the school year started.
鈥淭hey came in, and they were dusting and cleaning vents that I don鈥檛 think had been touched in 10 years,鈥� he said. 鈥淛ust finetooth-comb. They started using Fabuloso. You鈥檙e walking in the halls, and it smells like home. It smells like Lysol. It smells like Pine-Sol and Fabuloso, and it鈥檚 like, yes, this is how it鈥檚 supposed to be.鈥�
If Armstrong is effusive with praise for Ribera and Gil, it鈥檚 because he鈥檇 spent years trying to get custodians, who were provided by an outside company, to take their jobs seriously.
It was an uphill battle that left Armstrong, staff, and students dissatisfied. There were constant emails from teachers complaining about unemptied trash cans, spilled soda that hadn鈥檛 been cleaned up, or floors that hadn鈥檛 been waxed in weeks.
That all changed when Ribera and Gil arrived and gave a frank assessment, laced with assurance: Your school is dirty, but we鈥檒l clean it up.
鈥淭hey just are very meticulous, and really take pride in their work,鈥� Armstrong said. 鈥漈hey just kept telling us that if we鈥檙e going to work here, then it鈥檚 going to be nice, we鈥檙e not going to work in a place that鈥檚 filthy.鈥�
鈥淚 am dead serious,鈥� Armstrong continued. 鈥淭his is my 27th year in education, and I have never had custodians at this level. From the time they walk in to the time they leave, they are cleaning, dusting.鈥�
The staff and faculty have been so impressed with the couple鈥檚 work that they named them as the staff members of the month in October.
The school bought Ribera an electric blower because he wanted to remove leaves and debris from the front steps so that students could walk in every morning without wading through debris. He buffs the floors every night.
Not too long ago, when it seemed like another district was trying to poach Ribera, Armstrong promptly called the couple鈥檚 boss.
鈥淚 was like, 鈥淟ook, whatever you鈥檝e got to pay him, you need to pay these folks,鈥� 鈥� to keep them, Armstrong said.
The difference is apparent to anyone entering the building. Teachers have told Armstrong to 鈥渒eep them forever,鈥� and even students are trying their best not to make a mess.
鈥淚t鈥檚 almost like you want to show it off,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like a new toy. It鈥檚 like a new car. It definitely gives us a sense of pride.鈥�
He wants Ribera and Gil to know 鈥渢hat they are loved, they are seen, and we truly appreciate the hard work that they do for our school.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 very apparent that they take pride in their job, and that they have really transformed our building through their tireless work of making sure that our building is clean every single day,鈥� Armstrong said.
Helga Gaecklein, cafeteria manager, 71st Classical Middle School, Fayetteville, N.C.
Helga Gaecklein is like the wise older aunt who keeps things humming along smoothly, shares a kind word with students after she鈥檚 served them their meals, and motivates staff to show up every day, said principal Queesha Tillman.
Tillman calls Gaecklein, who oversees four cafeteria workers, a master of logistics, ensuring that everything from inventory for all school meals, portion intake, and equipment are meticulously tracked.
鈥淪he doesn鈥檛 like paperwork鈥攂ut she is good at it,鈥� Tillman said. 鈥淢s. Helga is a veteran in her field. She鈥檚 been doing it for years; she loves what she does. She gives 100 percent.鈥�
Although she鈥檚 in charge of the department, Tillman also serves students, relishing her interactions with them. She started an incentive program this year to award gift cards and other donations to the most well-behaved class in the lunchroom.
With the school having a new administrative team this year鈥攂oth Tillman and the assistant principal are new to 71st Classical鈥攊t鈥檚 good for students to have a constant, trusted figure, Tillman said.
Tillman has found Gaecklein鈥檚 warmth and humor comforting as she鈥檚 settled into her new position.
鈥淪he is a comedienne,鈥� Tillman said. 鈥淪he makes me laugh. Ms. Helga is all around a really good person, and I am glad to be working with her.鈥�
Every individual in the school community plays a role in the school鈥檚 success, Tillman said.
鈥淚t takes everybody to make sure that the school runs efficiently and effectively鈥攕o it takes us all,鈥� Tillman said. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 ever be in a position where we think that one position is higher than the other. We all have strengths. That is where her strengths lie, in the child nutrition area, and she shows her strengths each and every day.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 important not to overlook them because they are just as important as a teacher, a bus driver, a custodian鈥� everybody is significant in the school setting,鈥� Tillman added.
April Huff, secretary, Kelso Virtual Academy, Kelso, Wash.
鈥淭he cement that holds this building together.鈥� That鈥檚 how Principal Cindy Sholtys-Cromwell describes the school鈥檚 secretary April Huff, with whom she鈥檚 worked for about a dozen years.
Huff was an instructional aide at Butler Acres Elementary School, but when Sholtys-Cromwell got the job to lead the virtual school, Sholtys-Cromwell confessed that, 鈥淚 stole her to come work with me.鈥�
Huff, who has been Sholtys-Cromwell鈥檚 secretary for about three years, is an indispensable right hand to the principal.
鈥淭o use a clich茅, she鈥檚 my ride-or-die person in this job,鈥� Sholtys-Cromwell said. 鈥淭here is no one else I鈥檇 want to have side by side with me. And a workhorse鈥攐h my God鈥� she is not afraid to get her hands dirty and jump in. She is amazing 鈥攕he absolutely is.鈥�
Huff鈥檚 long tenure in education means that 鈥渟he knows everybody,鈥� Sholtys-Cromwell said. 鈥淎nd, if not, she鈥檚 going to make you feel like she鈥檚 known you for years by the time you leave the office.鈥�
Among Huff鈥檚 superpowers: She lights up a room, can diffuse any tense situation, and has no fear saying to her boss, 鈥楥indy, this does not make sense.鈥� But she鈥檚 also really great at ensuring students are taken care of.
Sholtys-Cromwell highlighted Huff鈥檚 role helping and comforting a senior, who had just lost her permanent home and had pretty much given up on the idea of graduating because of the hurdles she鈥檇 have to surmount.
In her trademark comforting and optimistic way, Huff said to the student, 鈥楪ive us some time. We鈥檙e going to figure it out. We鈥檙e going to come up with a plan,鈥欌�� Sholtys-Cromwell recalled.
By the time the student left the office, she had been matched with counselors and had a path to make her way to the graduation stage, Sholtys-Cromwell said.
She鈥檚 done the same for students struggling to get their technology to work (a not uncommon occurrence at a virtual school), figuring out Byzantine immunization requirements, or dealing with deaths in their families.
鈥淪he is one of those individuals who makes you feel like you鈥檙e the most important person in the world right now鈥攕he has the patience of Job,鈥� Sholtys-Cromwell said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no way our school or our staff would be successful without her.鈥�
Support staff 鈥渁re the cement that hold our school buildings together,鈥� Sholtys-Cromwell said. 鈥淎nd I am blessed to be surrounded by a whole bunch of them.鈥�
