Chapter Ten: Sharing Rules

Chapter 10: Sharing Rules

Rule Number One: Never Disrespect the Custodian

Once upon a time I was a first grade teacher in Albuquerque, New Mexico. My class ate popcorn every Friday, which, unbeknownst to me, really infuriated the custodian. He quietly fumed and plotted his revenge. When parent conference day came around I arrived at school to find all the desks in my classroom pushed to the corner and piled to the ceiling. By the time parents arrived, I was dripping sweat and red-faced. I learned the importance of making friends with the custodian. Over the years, as I racked up different teaching experiences around the county, I realized this rule applies to other school support staff as well. I hadn’t forgotten these lessons when I came to Prospect, I just found it a little more difficult to be successful.

Our entire campus is owned by the public schools. We use part of the campus and Haven High, the alternative high school, uses the rest. The key players at Haven High are the principal (Oscar), the curriculum specialist (Tara), the secretary (Agnes) and the custodians (Vince and Sonya). Figuring out how to share space with the Haven High is an on-going headache.

Vince and Sonya are responsible for the custodial care of the entire campus: both Haven High and Prospect. However, their office and allegiance is at Haven High. Vince is the daytime custodian. He arrives at 7:00 and leaves at 3:00. Sonya works from 9:00-5:00. She used to work nights until she was mugged on campus one night, although word has it she gave as good as she got. Sonya has more seniority so she sees herself as Vince’s boss. Vince vacuums, Sonya watches, leaning against the wall. Vince mows the lawn, Sonya watches, leaning against the office doorway. When Vince empties trash, Sonya will sometimes grab a basket or two to empty. Mostly Vince and Sonya stand around, watching the comings and goings of the campus and reporting any gossip to Miss Agnes, the Haven High secretary.

Sonya has a crush on Ernie, my counselor. She “puts on her lips” when she knows she is going to see him. I am now the villain who is “hassling Ernie” and Sonya spends long hours commiserating with secretary Agnes about how awful I am. She complains that my students throw away too much trash, that the floors are too littered, that the bathrooms are too smelly. Sonya directs me to tell my teachers to stop the boys from peeing all over the toilet seats. Before I arrived, Vince and Sonya didn’t do bathrooms. I had to trade cleaning classrooms for cleaning bathrooms and emptying trash. Sonya’s complaints are not limited to custodial issues. She tells me my students are too loud, curse too much, walk where they should not walk....

Vince and I get along better than Sonya and I do. I usually arrive at work shortly after 7:00 am; Vince comes in my portable to vacuum about that same time. Although he and Ernie are friends, despite the escalating problems between me and Ernie, Vince isn’t giving me the silent treatment, at least not most days. Sometimes he is moody, but he usually apologizes the next day saying it was his low blood sugar that made him so nasty. Vince and I talk about the new house he is building and what we did over the weekend. Often I’ve flown someplace north, often he has fixed something electrical. Vince is somewhat deaf and holds these conversations while vacuuming. We both nod a lot and have to guess at what is being said. Vince has a good sense of humor and we engage in some sarcastic bantering. Vince could vacuum my office anytime but I think he enjoys our early morning conversations - before anyone else arrives, before any children fight, before teachers threaten to quit and before Sonya comes to watch him work and talk about how awful everything is.

Every time we have a celebration at Prospect, I invite Vince and Sonya. Vince always says he has to check with Sonya and Sonya always says no. When one of my students says he wants to be a custodian, I ask Vince if this boy could spend some time “job shadowing” Vince. Vince has to ask Sonya. Sonya is angry with me for not asking her first. She tells me Custodians are not to have contact with students. Vince seems happiest on those days when he is at work and Sonya is off, he whistles and smiles. Vince never complains about Sonya although once when Vince was out sick for a week, I welcomed him back saying “I think Sonya missed you.” Vince replied “Guess she had to do some work for once.”

Rule Number Two: Make Friends with the Secretary

Agnes, the secretary, sits just inside the main entrance to Haven High. The first things you see when you enter the school are Agnes’s desk, Agnes’s head and Agnes’s giant Confederate flag. The flag is enormous, it covers the entire wall behind Agnes. Agnes is very proud of her flag and her southern heritage. In fact, when I first arrived, we bonded over my interest in Florida history. Agnes gave me a hard-covered book on Florida and offered to speak to my students when we did our Florida History unit. Agnes was friendly towards me initially, but that was before the Ernie problems started. Sometimes when I call Ernie on the walkie-talkie and he doesn’t respond, I can find him trading laments with Agnes. Agnes has become my archenemy. When I phone, she answers in her southern lilting sing-song until she identifies me as the caller. Rapidly the tone changes to harsh, barely contained anger, perfunctory at best. Never let the secretary become your enemy. The only thing worse is alienating the custodian. Alas, by disciplining Ernie, I have done both. Agnes likes to “keep her eyes open” and report to Oscar, the Haven High principal, on what she has seen.

Rule Number Three: Bond with Fellow Principals

Oscar, the principal of Haven High, arrives late, leaves early, does very little work, and is constantly feeling threatened by imaginary conspiracies. Once he was a public school principal on the verge of being fired. Then someone decided it would be easier to marginalize his incompetence by putting him in charge of the public high school program for drop-outs. Once again the students who need the most, get the least.

Oscar meets with me shortly after I start at Prospect. He explains that this is his campus and I am his guest and I must behave like a good guest and this includes, but is not limited to, making sure my students behave and not trespassing on certain areas of campus which are off limits to me, my staff and my students. Oscar has a large office in the cinderblock building (not in a portable) with plush carpet and a door. His sanctuary is decorated with dog and train art. He owns two dogs. He speaks often of their health. I invite Oscar to drop in on my office and visit my classrooms anytime. He does not.

When secretary Agnes reports to Oscar on my coming and goings, it often results in tersely worded memos to me from Oscar. I suggest he just pick up the phone and call me when something troubles him. He refuses. “That’s not my job; I’m not your boss.”

Tara is Oscar’s brain. Her official title is Curriculum Specialist. She is a kind, dedicated, work-a-holic who manages to be loyal to Oscar, tolerate Agnes and help me any way she can.

One day I ask Tara if we can use classroom A for our Tuesday afternoon staff meetings. Classroom A is on Haven High’s side of the cinderblock building, but it is not used for students. It is used once a month for Haven High staff meetings. Tara says we can use it. This is a much better meeting location than having my staff sit in the snug student desk/chairs in the classrooms (unlike my mostly slender students, many of my staff members are on the large side) and the acoustics are better than in the cafeteria. We hold our weekly meetings in Classroom A and all is good, until Oscar sends a memo. We will no longer be permitted to use classroom A. It is inconvenient for custodian Sonya to unlock it and once she found dirt footprints on the carpet. I call Oscar and try to renegotiate. No luck. I am a guest and some places are off limits to guests. Oscar tells me he regrets he ever extended this kindness to me in the first place.

One day Oscar does call me; his call makes me wish for his toxic memos. At 7:30 that morning, Vince had given me some bad news. The girls' bathroom in the cinderblock building has a leaking toilet. Although maintenance has been called, they haven’t arrived, so the bathroom is out of order today. The nearest student bathroom is in the classroom behind the cafeteria but that classroom is being scraped and painted so people can’t go in. I wait until 8:30 then try to contact Oscar, Agnes or Tara. Oscar isn't in yet, Tara has an appointment and won’t be in until 10:30 and Agnes is home sick. At this point, three classes are left without convenient toilet access. I make a decision and advise those classes to use the staff restroom in the cinderblock building until the girls’ bathroom is repaired.

The first class to do so is stopped by Sonya. She tells them this is forbidden. The teachers radio me for instructions. I suggest they use the boys’ room but the girls are horrified and refuse. I tell the teacher to march the students over to my office. It is a hike, but they can use this staff bathroom.

Oscar finally arrives at work. His first agenda item is to phone me. Oscar is very upset. He speaks rapidly, loudly and without pausing. He says he will have a union grievance if my students use the staff bathroom. He accuses me of “willful disobedience” by not asking. He says the leak in the toilet in the girl's bathroom is due to my staff providing poor supervision and if the students suffer due to this inconvenience then this is an appropriate punishment for their destructive behavior.

I wait until he takes a breath then suggest since he is clearly very angry we should talk face-to-face. He begins the tirade anew. He says I need to see things his way, adding "and I really don't care about your perspective.” He isn’t finished. He says if I had spoken to his staff first he might have been able to bend the rules temporarily. I point out there was no one to speak with earlier but since we are talking now, could we temporarily bend the rules? Oscar says no, “You have to learn to ask first and not ask forgiveness later. I will not permit your students to use the staff bathroom.” He then complains about graffiti in the bathroom. He says I need to teach my staff to supervise the students correctly. Shortly after he hangs up, Oscar sends me a memo, cc’d to his boss, assistant superintendent Paul Cook and to Henry, my liaison in the public school. Terse bullets outline my outrageous behavior. Henry phones to say how sorry he is that I have to contend with Oscar. While I appreciate Henry’s sympathy it does occur to me that Henry is in a position to apply some pressure to Oscar, but has chosen not to do so. As I will slowly learn, Henry does not rock the boat.

Thus the staff of Haven High is added to my list of potential daily stress inducers which already includes: troubled students, angry parents, stressed-out teachers and a difficult boss. When someone shouts “incoming” I’m not sure in which direction to look.