PHOTO GALLERY: Highlighting Custodial Workers During a Pandemic

October 2, 2020

During the unusual year COVID-19 has created at App State, students and faculty are relying on custodial staff workers to a new degree when it comes to staying safe and healthy. These staff workers have had to undergo additional training and incorporate new procedures into their already busy schedules, enabling students to continue their education while preventing the spread of COVID-19.

In Wey Hall, custodial staffer Nathan Shook, is experiencing new challenges and routines he has not had to deal with in his 13 years of working at App State. Sianna Gutschick, sophomore operations assistant, found herself a new job at the beginning of the semester sanitizing commonly touched surfaces on an hourly basis in the Plemmons Student Union. Adelina Moctezuma, custodial staffer, works her afternoon shift in L.S. Dougherty, keeping in mind the rigorous training she underwent about new safety regulations amid pandemic. Lashey Reid, custodial staffer, cleans the classrooms and sitting areas on all four floors of Peacock Hall, finding the addition of masks a challenge.

These are just some of the individuals that work hard everyday to keep students and faculty safe.

Sianna Gutschick, sophomore, works in the Plemmons Student Union as an operation assistant. She started working on the first day of the fall 2020 semester. Gutschick has her temperature taken before each shift and works around a total of 11 hours a week. She enjoys the job and doesn’t feel unsafe or at risk. (Kara Haselton)

Sianna Gutschick, sophomore, wipes down a table in the Solarium, a popular room where students sit and study in the Plemmons Student Union. Gutschick does hourly cleans while she works in the union, disinfecting all sitting areas, stair cases and tables in order to provide a safer environment for her peers. (Kara Haselton)

Lashey Reid started working with App State about a month and a half ago to help keep Peacock Hall safe and clean for students and faculty. To keep herself entertained while she works 29 hours a week cleaning all the classrooms and sitting areas, Reid likes to listen to music of all kinds. Reid is thankful for what this job provides during a difficult time. (Kara Haselton)

Adelina Moctezuma, who did not want to be pictured, has lived in Boone with her family for four years and started working at App State a couple months ago. Her work in L.S. Dougherty Hall involves disinfecting everything three to four times during her afternoon shift: the doors, keyboards, stair rails, chairs and more. Moctezuma feels safe and grateful to not see sick students or faculty. (Kara Haselton)

Nathan Shook has worked in Wey Hall for 13 years.Just weeks before students came back, it was up to him and his fellow staff to strip and wax the floors and wipe the building down clean. He now works to keep the building sanitary and safe for students everyday, from refilling the “moonshine hand sanitizer” stations to spraying down every computer keyboard. He sympathizes with the students and the frustrating change in their education the pandemic has caused. (Kara Haselton)

The storage supply of the “moonshine hand sanitizer.” Nathan Shook puts it in every classroom and hallway of Wey Hall. Due to the high demand of hand sanitizer during the COVID-19 pandemic, distilleries have started producing and selling hand sanitizer. (Kara Haselton)

Nathan Shook and other custodial staff in Wey Hall work to make sure each classroom is stocked with cleaning products to keep students and professors safe. (Kara Haselton)

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