Pierce brings on new custodial staff

Five new hires hope to boost campus upkeep

KATERINA CHRYSSAFIS Reporter @katchryssafis

Pierce College recently hired five new custodians with the approval of the Los Angeles Community College District in order to improve cleanliness and offer additional help on campus.

Operations Manager Rodney Allen said that though the employees are in a trial period, there has been an outstanding change on campus so far.

“There is a six-month probation that they are required to go through, but they have definitely already made an impact,” Allen said.

Allen also outlined the vast array of tasks that these custodians are entrusted with, such as the upkeep of classrooms and restrooms, campus maintenance and event preparation.

“It’s a lot to do. We have been short for so long. As operations manager, I’m very grateful for them bringing on these new positions,” Allen said.

With more custodians now at Pierce, Allen said they are now able to form a buddy system when faced with difficult tasks.

“These five new positions allow us to start team-cleaning. A crew will go together to do things such as strip floors and clean air vents,” Allen said.

Pierce theater major Sean Gassaway has also noticed an improvement on campus since the start of the spring semester.

“I see a lot less garbage around the campus as a whole,” said Gassaway. “I really think that the custodial staff is doing a great job.”

Despite the improvement so far, Gassaway has also seen areas on campus that may require more attention.

“Some of the bathrooms need work. I’ve seen them trashed a couple of times. I think the amount of custodial workers they have is insufficient to clean the campus effectively. They try as hard as they can but it’s just not enough,” said Gassaway.

Director of Facilities Paul Nieman said that we have a cleaner campus overall, but that many of the custodians hired have been replacements.

“We are still trying to get our numbers to where they need to be,” Nieman said.

Allen expressed gratitude toward his staff and said the new hires will help his department run more smoothly.

“No matter what job we have, we don’t do it alone. These five people make my job easier,” Allen said. “Sure it’s more to manage, but I’m happy to do it.” studies who teaches in the smart classroom in Village 8112.

The Information Technology department is still trying to resolve the issue, but Grover said she is optimistic that there will soon be a solution to the technological issues.

Some students in Grover’s class have started to bring their own laptops and speakers to class to ensure that the technical blip won’t impact their education at Pierce this semester.

-Bruce Rosky Associate Vice President

The rooms are intended to provide an enhanced teaching platform, and designed to improve education via the integration of technology into classrooms.

Most of the rooms include computers with specialized software and hardware, projectors, interactivve whiteboards, advanced networking, audience response technology, and assistive listening devices.

The smart classrooms are being installed by California-based company Utelogy.

Physics and Chemistry student

Angad Singh is familiar with the smart classroom in the Center for Sciences Building.

“There have been issues before, but once the teachers knew how to use them there were no problems,” said Singh. “They can save all the information they draw on the board and send it to Moodle after class, which is nice.”

“Student success is the primary goal,” said Bruce Rosky, associate vice president at Pierce and a cochair of the Technology Committee.

Rosky said he is unaware of any problems within the smart classrooms, but wants to bring “more tech in the classroom, as many instructors rely on the methodology of using PowerPoint.”

“I don’t blame them for backing out,” said Benne, who added that the decision was nevertheless a blow to the program’s purpose.

This semester’s HIV/AIDS Awareness week will take place from March 16 through 26. About 10 speakers from the Being Alive organization will visit classrooms to speak about the ways in which they or people they know been affected by the virulent disease.

“I believe in this so much,” Benne said. “I believe in prevention. That is our job, to educate and prevent. Through education we can prevent.”

Benne said she was dismayed when last semester’s testing was cancelled, and called it “a huge dig at the whole concept of health care reform.”.

Pierce student Fritz Arevalo said he looks forward to HIV/AIDS Awareness week.

“I think it’s great,” Arevalo said. “Last year I had a speaker come into my class and it was really moving.”

Benne said the testing is available to anyone who wishes to participate, and will not require identification or proof of attendance at Pierce.

“From the time a person is tested, it only takes twenty minutes to get results,” said Health Center assistant Loralyn Frederick.

BIENESTAR’s HIV-testing will be held in Parking Lot 1 beginning March 23 from 2-7 p.m., and will conclude on March 26. On March 24 and 25, tests will also be provided for students with morning classes between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Titus Littlejohn / Roundup

Daniel Rowe, nine-year custodial employee at Pierce College on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015 in Woodland Hills, Calif.