CHARLOTTE, N.C. — With cleaning classrooms, bathrooms, gyms and offices, school custodians have a lot of work to do. And now many Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools custodians are hoping they receive some much-needed appreciation for their work.
Wednesday evening, members of the community hosted an education rally at Marshall Park ahead of the return to school in just a few weeks. During the rally, speakers discussed equity and support.
CMS custodian Brandon Chuck Brown also used that opportunity to explain how those same ideas can be applied to the work of school custodians too
“We have a very strong factor in the school system," Brown said. “After we clean, we sanitize as well just to make sure that the kids and teachers and administration come into a safe environment.”
He adds in the age of COVID-19, a custodian's duty to help keep the schools clean is more important than ever. Brown says he would like to see some appreciation and compensation for the role, much like CMS offered more money and hiring incentives for bus drivers, teachers and other positions.
“Every school custodian should feel more like family than just custodians," Brown said.
WCNC Charlotte reached out to CMS late Wednesday evening to see if the district had any comment for the custodian concerns. The district has not yet responded to that request.
Contact Briana Harper at bharper@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.