The week of March 24 marked LSU’s first ever Custodian Appreciation Week, a week meant to highlight the hard work of all LSU custodians and recognize their commitment to keeping the campus beautiful.
Tyhlar Holliway, a sophomore political science and English double major on the pre-law track, is responsible for spearheading this initiative. As a member of the Student Government senate, Holliway was able to pass a bill for the creation of Customer Appreciation Week. However, the whole process from start to finish was less than simple.
“I just knew that I would have to put the work in if I wanted to see the custodians get appreciated and have this week,” Holliway said. “And for me, I want to have it every year. This is an initiative that I want every year to be continued.”
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Holliway was originally inspired to orchestrate this event through her friendship with Ashley Chester, a custodian whom she met her freshman year while living in the Laville Honors House.
“She was a mother figure for me,” Holliway said. “Me being a first gen student, it was very important for me to find community and belonging on campus, and so one of the people who made this big university a very small and beautiful place for me was Ms. Ashley.”
Holliway hopes that Custodian Appreciation Week finally affords custodians like Chester the recognition they deserve.
LSU Residential Life currently employs 152 custodians and 23 supervisors responsible for the upkeep of 23 residential halls and two apartment complexes, stated Celena Jackson, the associate director of housing operations.
“I would say the challenge is now we have to adapt,” Sedra Signater, an LSU custodian of three years, said. “And it’s like there’s no such thing as downtime to do something because there’s students all day long, during the whole semester, besides during the summer or a holiday. But you have to know how to maneuver your job with the students.”
Jamar Alford, an LSU custodian of 12 years, believes that custodial work is now more important than ever. In this post-COVID age, keeping campus beautiful and protecting students’ health go hand-in-hand.
To celebrate Custodian Appreciation Week, Student Government hosted a variety of events, including a breakfast on March 25 and a dinner on March 27 specifically for the custodians. The meals were catered by LSU Dining and had an overall turnout of about 375 guests in total.
“This morning with the breakfast, students were serving the custodians,” Holliway said. “So that giving-back aspect– students, faculty, they were serving the breakfast to the custodians, whereas on the other end, they’re always serving us.”
Both the breakfast and dinner allowed students and keynote speakers to stand and express their gratitude for the work custodians do. LSU Student Government also wrote and distributed thank-you cards to all of the guests.
Another special part of the dinner was the award presentation, which allowed the different departments to nominate a custodian for awards like the Rising Star, Above and Beyond, Team Player and Custodian of the Year.
“It was so special,” Holliway said. “You see them just lighting up when they hear their name called for an award. This is truly what LSU should be doing, uplifting these communities that we depend on so much.”
With all that custodians do for LSU, one can only hope that Custodian Appreciation Week becomes an annual celebration that will continue to uplift and motivate these hard working members of the LSU faculty while also encouraging students to express their own gratitude.
“Our staff have some of the most challenging jobs on this campus at times,” Jackson said. “A week like this week is especially meaningful to them as they see the appreciation coming from the students, which is the most rewarding of all. The relationships formed with the students motivate them daily to give it their all and make sure the students have clean environments to thrive in.”
