The confessions of the UM custodial staff

By Reed Strength

On the first floor of Napier Residence Hall, there is the quiet but distinct sound of a mop smacking against the floor. UM custodian Cynthia Carlisle is hard at work cleaning the small messes left behind residents from the night before. She cleans the first floor of Napier five times a week, taking care of the hall, bathrooms and a section of the basement.


Carlisle has been a custodian at the University for 14 years, all of them spent in Napier. "Its...good memories and it's things you don't want to remember," Carlisle admitted with a touch of humor in her voice.

A view of the cleaning supplies inside of a custodial closet.

Fellow custodian Philip Swint says he's been with the university longer, for 38 years. He started out in Napier, but says his favorite building is Lund Hall because if its elevator.


Swint and Carlisle are two custodians out of a 25 person Housekeeping staff.




Custodial Director Landon Walls says the majority of his staff are above the age of 50 and female.

A typical work day for the Housekeeping staff starts at 5:30 a.m. Most are assigned to one of the academic buildings. They are tasked with cleaning the building and preparing it for the first classes of the day at 8 a.m.

Some have secondary buildings they tend to at different times throughout the week. After those duties are done, the Residence Halls are taken care of.

Who cleans what and where is decided by a formula Walls has created. "I have it divided up with time to clean," he said. "There is a general estimate that a person of certain different age groups can clean this many square feet adequately per hour."

Philip Swint pours water into a mop bucket.

The director says the despite the careful formula, its limits are pushed by the small size of his staff.

In Napier, each custodian takes care of a floor. The building's basement is divided among the three workers

Throughout the years, Swint and Carlisle have not only seen the campus change, but the students as well.



They often receive gifts from the staff and residents they see daily, but also getting to know those they are working around.

Carlisle says the most important lesson she can offer the students she encounters is to stay in school. "The more you get upstairs, the more you gonna have in your pocket," she said with confidence.

For more information on the UM custodial staff, visit their legacy.com page.