Oct. 2 marked National Custodian Appreciation Day for 2025. This dedicated day recognizes the work custodial staff do for the cleanliness and maintenance of school and work spaces. In honor of the work St. Olaf custodians do, many Residence Life student hall coordinators placed thank-you cards in entryways of residence halls for students to sign as they passed by.
“As a Student Hall Coordinator in New Hall, I can say for certain that without the amazing and monumental efforts that our custodial team undertakes on a daily basis, our hall would not be the warm and welcoming environment that we all strive for it to be,” Aaron Thomas Rejimon ’26 said in an interview with The Olaf Messenger.
Assistant Director of Facilities for Custodial Services and Event Support Mandy Paul outlined the average schedule of custodial work in an interview with The Olaf Messenger. A custodian’s work is not just within the residence halls. A majority of campus custodians typically begin their day between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. in academic buildings or offices to get spaces ready before the first waves of human traffic around 7:30 a.m. Around that time, custodians will pivot to bathrooms and spaces not directly linked to active working. Between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., custodians once again pivot to an assigned space in residence hall buildings.
The goal for custodial work is to work out of public view. When students and faculty aren’t in academic buildings, custodians are there, just the same with residence halls. There are some other miscellaneous afternoon and evening shifts in spaces such as Tomson and Skoglund, as well as coverage in Buntrock from 5 a.m. to 2 a.m.
“We’re behind the scenes, but a lot of our work is seen [as] we’re here early or late,” Paul said. “Hopefully our cleaning allows people to learn or work in a nice environment, and not so much of focusing on the space.”
Custodians are the largest facilities team at St. Olaf with 59 currently employed. These staff members are a vital part to our community running smoothly.
“We are a part of the community in a different way; we support through our cleaning,” Custodial Supervisor Nick McCollum said. “So the way we support the community is important and plays a big role in the success of the College.”
To show appreciation for custodians outside of Custodial Appreciation Day, Paul and McCollum said that it would be nice for students to take care of each other and their communal spaces.
“Having respect for the next student who is going to use it [the space], then the custodians benefit from that,” McCollum said. “Not necessarily keeping it clean for our sake, but if everyone is respectful of the space and knowing ‘well, someone is going to use this space after me today,’ [and keeping it] clean for one another, it will be beneficial for everyone at the end of the day.”
Moving forward in caring for spaces, keep in mind the students and staff who also use the space. Be considerate of the shared space we have. Acknowledging custodians when you see them is another way to show your appreciation throughout the year.
“Just say hi when you see [custodians] out and about,” Paul said. “We’re a little bit more behind-the-scenes, but our work is visible; it’s our little part in taking care of things.”
