by Justin Lakso ‘25

Whether it be the classrooms, the lockers, the bathrooms, or the hallways, the Building Services staff are truly the unnoticed heroes keeping the Sherwood building habitable. They arrive early and stay late just to make sure every student and staff member can come to a clean and orderly school building. Now the question arises, why is the Sherwood building still sometimes messy if they’re working so hard?
Positions in the team are hard to fill, occasionally looking to the furthest reaches of Montgomery County to find a suitable hire. This can lead to Building Services being understaffed for a long period. “The MCPS process to be hired takes time, so the position could be open for a while,” explained School Business Administrator Linda Berkheimer.

Two staff members were missing from an already small roster last August, which meant even more work for the rest of the team (without another person arriving for another three months). These staffing issues are becoming a problem with how large the school building is. Sherwood is 342,000 square feet with only three custodians on shift during the school day, and “that makes it impossible for us to cover the entire building during the day with what we have,” said Building Services Manager Pete Jones. If Building Services were allowed just two, maybe three more people on shift during the school day, the trash littering the school could be cleaned up a lot faster.

Even though it might not seem like it, students are responsible for the appearance of the school as well. Some inconsiderate kids think it’s funny to tear soap dispensers and sinks off the wall, smoke in the bathrooms, or throw their trash wherever they please, but it’s more inconsiderate than amusing. These acts of vandalism create even more work for an already understaffed and overworked team.

“On one hand, we’re responsible for keeping the building clean, but on the other hand, show some respect for the school,” said Jones. Students should be working with the Building Services team to clean up the school, not against them. Take pride in the school and clean up your own trash; it’s the least you can do to help.