Operations Department keeps school district running

An essential department functioning primarily in the background is our Operations Department. John King, deputy director of Operations, oversees the myriad activities that go on behind the scenes, essential tasks and responsibilities that keep us up and running as a district.

The Operations Department ensures we have clean, safe, and secure buildings where teachers can come teach and students can come learn.

When King stopped by and began talking about all the projects and activities taking place in his department, it became clear that much of this important, critical work takes place with others totally unaware.

The two primary areas of focus for Operations are custodial and maintenance; this, in addition to construction, both new and remodeling and/or repairs. Much of the work is straightforward and detailed clearly in the public bonds.

During the summer months, tasks include moving all the furniture out of classrooms for deep cleaning, along with stripping and waxing floors, shampooing carpets, cleaning and disinfecting all surfaces, and much more. With summer programs for students — band camps, football camps, summer programs — not to mention construction and repairs going on, it's often a challenge to fit in all the tasks that need doing.

Oh ... also, there's grounds work to take care of, especially with all the rain we've had this year. Custodial staff also mow, trim, sweep,and clean up around the buildings.

The maintenance part of Operations takes care of general repairs, painting, upgrades to HVAC systems, inspections of infrastructures, along with taking care of the never-ending stream of incoming work orders.

Among our maintenance staff are licensed and certified employees in all trades, and preventive maintenance is high on the priority list to ensure solid and safe facilities. It's also during the brief summer window that major jobs are undertaken; digging up and replacing lines, re-doing and/or maintaining the grounds farther away from the buildings, and more.

Sadly, there's been a considerable increase in vandalism across the district. King said, “We'd like nothing more than to keep open playgrounds and access to facilities, but there's been such an increase in vandalism, we have to protect taxpayer property.”

Hence, the fences and locked gates to protect from malicious destruction. Although security cameras are everywhere, it's not always possible to track down the perpetrators.

You know how superheroes are often known to work in secret, anonymously? Next time you see one of our custodians or maintenance workers, just picture that superhero cape billowing out behind them as they go about their day. That's our guys and gals ... district superheroes.

Cindy Kleyn-Kennedy is the Instructional Technology Coordinator for the Clovis Municipal Schools and can be reached at

[email protected]