While many students at La Salle are still sleeping at 7 a.m., Facilities Director Mr. Josh Myers is already getting the school ready for a day of learning. 

He begins his day by checking his email before doing his rounds throughout the school, which include checking the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and the cleaning done the night before.

His job — which he described as maintaining “all the working parts of the school” — covers a wide range of tasks that make La Salle run, such as fixing electrical and plumbing problems, managing the account with the landscaping company, setting up events, cleaning up spills, and managing the account for the custodial contractors, which are hired from an outside company to do the nightly cleaning. They come in around 3:30 p.m. and work until around 11 p.m. or midnight.

Mr. Myers’s responsibilities tend to change with the seasons, as differences in weather bring in a whole slew of challenges surrounding the HVAC system.

“Anytime we go to a season change, when we’re getting into the heating, I have a hard time getting all the classrooms where the teacher would like them or the kids like them,” he said.

Since the school’s system is a bit old, problems arise every other week or so, Mr. Myers explained. In order to address these, he has to call the HVAC company to schedule someone to come out, which can be difficult due to the busyness of the school.

“It’s challenging for me because I like to just get the problem fixed and done with,” he said. “A lot of times, being in a school, it’s not that simple.”

Even in the summer, when one might think things are slow, he is very busy.

In addition to the annual maintenance of painting and window cleaning, every year, La Salle chooses one part of the school to renovate, a project that Mr. Myers helps manage. He serves as the school contact for the outside contractors, which are typically needed for the jobs.

“I give them the knowledge I know about the place,” he said. “Then I [have] to coordinate schedules.”

Mr. Myers has been at La Salle for seven years now, but his past is full of different jobs.

He received his teaching degree and was planning to become a social studies teacher before realizing that wouldn’t be the right fit for him. He then became a contractor, focusing on remodels, before landing a job with the facilities staff at New Seasons Market.

He joined the La Salle community after a friend of his in the counseling center told him about the job opening.

When he first started working here, he had a full-time employee, who has since left. Last spring, he hired Mr. Martin De Jesus González as the Assistant Facilities Director to fill that space.

Mr. De Jesus González was originally a contracted custodian, but when the opportunity arose for him to join the La Salle team permanently, Mr. Myers hired him because “I knew he was a hard worker,” he said.

His job consists of a variety of tasks. Some days he’ll clean liquid spills, fix broken tables, or help set up for an event.

“There’s always something different,” Mr. De Jesus González said. “There’s not one specific thing that you do every day.” 

There is one thing he loves to do though: maintain the school’s outside environment.

After break and lunch, save for the cold seasons, you can find him in the courtyard tidying or picking up litter from students.

“I like to keep it clean,” he said.

Although he has cleaning experience from his past job, he recognizes that there’s still some things he needs to develop.

“There’s a lot to learn, and I’m learning,” he said.

Outside of La Salle, Mr. De Jesus González doesn’t have much free time, but said he spends what he does have with his four kids. He has a 17-year-old son, a 15-year-old daughter, a 13-year-old son, and a six-year-old son.

“It’s more about my kids than me,” he said.

Mr. Myers also has a daughter who is a freshman at Ida B. Wells High School. Other than going to her soccer games and snowboarding with her, he enjoys backpacking, fishing, and loves watching any Northwest sports team.

Mr. De Jesus González said his motivation to work in the cleaning industry is internal.

“I like that I can make a difference,” he said, explaining that it is “for me to feel good with myself, for what I’ve done.”

Mr. De Jesus González appreciates many aspects of his job at La Salle, but one of his favorite parts is the people, something that Mr. Myers echoed.

“It is a very friendly place, and it’s a very family type atmosphere where everybody’s super positive,” Mr. Myers said. “Everybody wants to be here to help each other, and I enjoy that. It makes it really easy to come to work.”

Although Mr. Myers has seen issues with vandalism and graffiti in the past, he noted that he’s observed an improvement in that so far this year.

“I feel like this school year has gone pretty well as far as just oversight of the campus and the way it’s being cared for,” he said.

However, Mr. Myers explained there is always room for improvement, especially with regards to accountability and tidiness. His hope in his role is to create a campus that represents the students themselves and can serve as a clean, productive place to learn.

Overall, Mr. Myers said he wishes students knew more about “what it takes to make this place represent what I think the kids like coming to see: having a clean place to come learn [and] having things that are functioning.”