Latest / The Recess-An Inside Look at the Auburn School District / Episode #21-Sergio Rios, Coordinator of Maintenance

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Episode #21-Sergio Rios, Coordinator of Maintenance · The Recess-An Inside Look at the Auburn School District

• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: Hello and welcome to the Recess Podcast.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: I'm your host, Dr.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: Alan Spicci, the proud superintendent of the Auburn School District.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: The Recess is a place where we tell stories about the district, and it gives me an opportunity to share some of the wonderful people and programs that I am fortunate to be able to see.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: And uh others maybe haven't had that opportunity, and I want to tell those stories.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: So uh we do all that we can to get the word out about the great things in Auburn in this podcast.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: Gives us one more way to do it.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: I think you're gonna really like it.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: And if you do, I am gonna ask you to please tell a friend about it.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we're gonna cover some great content with one of our really important uh support departments and uh leaders in our district and probably hit on some themes with the trades and how that's important in Auburn School District.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: So I think you're really going to enjoy this episode, and let me go ahead and bring in our guests this week, our coordinator coordinator of maintenance, Sergio Rios.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: Sergio, welcome.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, thank you.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: And Sergio uh is uh really a sharp guy, he is rising fast in our system.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: He's uh now the coordinator of maintenance.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_00: Uh we're so proud of our facilities.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_00: And uh just the other day I was touring somebody through Auburn High School and they couldn't believe it was 10 years old.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: They thought it it must still be a brand new school.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and it's it's you know it's the pride our kids take, but it's really um the work that our incredible maintenance and operations team does uh through the school year, through our custodial program, and then uh lots of TLC that's applied in the summer.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: That that team works harder than anybody uh from June through August to get the schools ready.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: So uh our kids are the beneficiary, and all of our teaching staff are.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: So let's get to know Sergio, and uh I think you're really gonna enjoy this episode.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: Sergio.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, sir.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: We start with a question uh that gets uh gives us a chance to get to know you a little bit, and uh it's a little bit of why we're all here.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: So who is your favorite teacher?
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_01: So back in seventh grade, her name was Miss Hoppmeyer, and she was my language arts teacher.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: And she was one of the reasons that I changed my life around.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_01: She was a very big impact in my life, and I guess she saw potential in myself that I didn't see, and she uh she was a guide all of through middle school and part of high school too.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so she was my favorite.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: That's such a great theme, and I hear this from some of my guests, and I have you know, one of my origin stories is my middle school music teacher uh had that same experience.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: He saw something in in me, and then it it not only uh pumped me up, it led to me working harder and and actually kind of rising to the potential that he saw.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so it's it's it's impressive when you have that kind of influence on you as well.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it changes your life completely because at home you're not getting that feedback, and when you have someone that uh you look at as like a role model to say, Hey, you got something going here, maybe you should keep going with this and support you in a way that your parents can't, uh that's that's a big deal.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: And it makes you wanna make them proud.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: And uh well here we are.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: Very good.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: I know through your interviews you've talked about other mentors you've had in your career as an adult.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: Uh we're gonna save that for later, but it's it's a really good story.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: So you are the coordinator of maintenance.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_00: Tell us what is that role in the Auburn School District.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm in charge of general maintenance and the paint shop.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_01: And basically, we're the guys that fix the locks and make sure that we got no leaky roofs and you know, ins and outs of the buildings, everything, man.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_01: We do a little bit of everything uh and we just make sure that these buildings are running and working correctly and you know, clean and everything to before the students show up, so they they they show up to a nice facility and and they're there to learn, they're not worried about stuff not working.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_01: So that's kind of what we're at, what we're doing right now.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: And your team does an amazing job.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, they're they're uh so proud of their work and proud of our facilities.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I can tell the audience if you had the opportunity to go to maintenance operations, you'd see these shops and you don't really think about it, but you know, in my house I have to have the the light bulbs that match my light fixtures, right?
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: We have 24 schools that were built in the 1960s, 70s, 80s, 90s, you know, to modern day.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: And so when you go back there, you just see all of this uh stuff that they have to make it work.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: It's pretty amazing.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I mean Mount Baker, that place looks incredible and it's pretty old.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_01: I was pretty impressed every time I walked through there.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: I'm like, shout out to Nicolas, you're doing a great job, bro.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, it's looking good over there.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_01: It's really cool to go around the building and make and seeing everyone working hard to make sure that it's running correctly so the students could do their learning and the teachers could teach, and they're not worried about other stuff, you know.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: So let's let's talk about your own pathway in the profession.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you what happened after you had that great class at middle school and you went to high school, and where did you go from there?
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm originally from Southern California.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_01: I was born and raised in Anaheim, California.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_01: So um, you know, like a lot of Hispanics, you know, rough at home, you know, not necessarily the most pleasant life, but you know, uh school was the place to kind of relieve that stress and uh and meet new kids or new friends, make friends and learn.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I've always been I get excited about learning.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: So my parents didn't speak English at the time, so it was really difficult for them to be able to teach me much.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_01: I learned about my culture, but not so much about the American culture.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_01: So I would learn that through either friends or or or teachers.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_01: And uh so, you know, in middle school after Miss Hoppmeyer, I used to be uh really obsessed with drawing, and I used to draw on all my papers.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_01: And uh I used to be a drummer.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I am a drummer still, but I used to be tapping on stuff all the time, and then my teachers would get upset.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_01: So Miss Hoppmeyer, I guess, saw that I could make beats and saw that I could draw.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_01: So she uh she pulled me out of one of my electives and she talked to someone and was like, hey, this kid could make beats and could be pretty good.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_01: So she put me in an art class and then she also put me in drumline.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_01: And um that changed my life completely.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: I got extremely focused in drawing and uh and in music, and um she would go to my concerts, my parents wouldn't be able to make it to my concerts because they worked two jobs, but Miss Hoppmeyer would be there, you know, and it was it was really cool to see.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_01: Like it I had never had anyone, um, including my parents, um, actually show up and and be there and present and say, Hey, right on, you did a good job, you know.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_01: So that was that was a big impact, and I felt like I I owed her something where I needed to do something with my life because she dedicated so much of her life um with me, you know.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: I guess she just saw something there, and uh she was always, you know, anytime I would step out of line, she would be the first person to let me know, like, you're out of line, man, you need to get back on that line.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, well, here we are, you know.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_01: I went to uh Kramer Middle School out in Placentia, California.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_01: I graduated from Valencia High School in in Placentia, California.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: And throughout high school, I was in the drum line playing drums, and uh basically that's that's kind of what led me to continue trying to be positive and do something with my life, you know.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: And um I did go to uh a college, ITT tech.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I ended off going to school there for criminal justice, but um like a lot of us, we ended off getting scammed, and it turned out to be uh not a real college, so we had to start a career over in something else.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_01: So that's how I ended off becoming a custodian out there in the Placentia Area building school district.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: So I got to work at the high school that I went to and the middle school that I went to, and eventually I ended off out here in Washington State working for the Federal Waste School District as a custodian.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: I was also a bus driver part-time.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um and I just saw that I could uh I just had mentors there too that helped me and guided me in uh uh teaching myself and speaking better, learning how to answer emails more professionally, and just basically took me under their wing.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: They they recommended books to read, they recommended um during that time my finances were a mess.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: So one of the principals there recommended a book, and I was able to get my finances straight based off that book, and just just people always feeding me information was kind of what got me here, and then I was given the opportunity to uh to work here at the Auburn School District as a substitute while I was a head custodian over in Federal Way, and eventually I came back in 2020 as the floor crew head custodian, uh, which I got to work with you guys a little bit more closely and uh continued to work my way up, decided to go back to school, still working on that, trying to become uh trying to get a bachelor's degree in business management is kind of what my ultimate goal is.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, because one day I would like to be an executive.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_01: So we're just following those footsteps and taking it slow but steady and you know, little by little.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_01: I'm on my second administration job now, so we're we're we're getting there with patience and and a lot of dedication.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: Good for you, Sergio.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_00: Do you remember the name of that book by any chance?
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was called The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was it's a fun book.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: I've actually handed it out to like six or different six or seven people already.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's it changed my life financially.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_01: It was it was a good book.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: It it is really powerful, and uh I I'll tell you when we had our strategic plan meetings, we brought together parents and asked them, what is it that you want for your kids from the district?
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: And the number one ask was financial literacy.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: And that led to us sending fourth graders and seventh graders to junior achievement.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_00: Uh it led it to us infusing mod modules on financial literacy at ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grade in the in the high school, like in Troy time and AR time, um and so forth.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: And uh it you're a great example of uh somebody getting that powerful knowledge early.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: So I thought that was really cool when you shared that in your interview that uh a principal had turned you onto that.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's very empowering.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Shout out to Mr.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: Glover.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: Excellent.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: All right, shout out to Mr.
• 11:31
  SPEAKER_00: Glover.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so you you mentioned that you're already on your second leadership position in the district.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_00: Uh tell our listeners about that.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_01: So I was in charge of the custodians, I was a night supervisor for the custodians for about three years.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: So um, you know, worked my way off from being a head custodian to the floor crew head custodian, and you know, eventually I became in charge of the custodians at night.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_01: So that's how I was able to build more of my leadership skills because you know, a lot of these uh custodians aren't their voices aren't really heard because they worked the night shift.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: So it was my job to make sure that I would check up on them and make sure that they had what they needed and that their voices were heard when they needed when they had some sort of concern or or even just wanting to talk, you know, just be there for them.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, there was days where I was here until like one, two in the morning doing inspections and all of that.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_01: So all that grinding and hard working got me prepared to the position I'm currently in, which it's a little bit more demanding, a little bit more technical, but um and very stressful, but at the same time, because of what I did with the custodian department, um, that basically trained me to be a little bit more proficient at what I'm doing right now.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure most of our audience doesn't have a concept of like what our custodians' schedules are and and how it's broken down between the head custodian and assistants.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: Could you explain how that works and what the hours are?
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_01: So we have custodians working 24 hours a day, sometimes seven days a week.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_01: We have high schools have overnight custodians, middle schools have overnight custodians.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_01: Most of you, most of you guys don't ever see them, you know, because by the time they leave, people are still not in the building.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_01: By the time they come in, people are leaving the building.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_01: So they're they're there are people that people mo they don't really see.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: They mainly take care of the gyms and those sorts of activities, like big activities that go past nine, ten o'clock, that in reality there's no way that the other custodians are gonna be able to take care of that.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_01: So that's what the overnight custodians do.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_01: And they are behind closed doors, in the dark, you know, dealing with everything, and most people don't even know that that's happening.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_01: And uh it's just it's just how it is, I guess.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: You know, they're just in the shadows, but they're they're very hardworking people and they're they're punctual, they're always doing their thing, and uh and you know, the head custodians in middle schools and high schools, they work the night shift.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um so in elementary schools they work the morning shift, but in the high schools and middle schools, night shift.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_00: So um because they're supervising their crew.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly, exactly.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_01: So they have you know upwards of five to six guys, maybe in high schools even more, and you know, especially Auburn High School, it's such a big, busy high school.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it requires the head custodian to be fully engaged in whatever it is they're doing and making sure that the guys are doing what they're supposed to be doing, but at the same time that they have a voice.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, I mean our our custodian team kicks butt, man.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_01: We we have a solid team here in this district.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: So let me just keep going on this theme.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: And you were starting with you you explained how you had a mentor uh who taught you about personal finance and leadership, and you have paid that back uh by forming a book study uh uh that you led.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_00: Uh can you tell our audience about that?
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_01: So it was not just me, it was also Jeff Lawson.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_01: So um he he's the one that's in charge of the custodians currently.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_01: Um and yeah, so we we did a book study.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: We actually did a book read with Cindy Blinesfield um first, and then we got the idea, hey, um, why don't we do this with our custodians?
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_01: So we did um uh Dare to Lead was the name of the book, and it was um it was really cool to see them, you could see their wheel spinning as they're reading the book because we're reading it together.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_01: We would have a um scenario and we would use Auburn High School as a scenario, and the scenario would be okay, you have to accomplish cleaning this entire building in the summer.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_01: You got two months left, but you got an example, ten guys.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_01: Out of those ten guys, three or four of them are gonna be on vacation.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: We also have custodians that are here only during the school year.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_01: So, especially high schools and middle schools, what that means is that we get like, you know, half the staff gone during the summer, so the other half has to clean the entire building by themselves.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_01: On top of that, they could get sick, they take vacation because it is the summer.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_01: So there's times where we only have one or two or three custodians cleaning Auburn High School, for example, right?
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_01: So the scenario would be okay, if you are the head custodian and these are your options, what are you going to do and how are you going to accomplish this?
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_01: How are you going to prioritize?
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: So we would set up some sort of scenario where we would write it down, we would have them basically write down what they thought they needed to do, what they would prioritize, but it would go all tied into the book.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: So they would read that chapter of the book and then they would basically problem solve, come back with whatever they decided that they felt was the right solution, and we would talk about it.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_01: And um I gotta say, most of the guys that were in that group are all head custodians now.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: And they've talked to Jeff and I, and they basically said thank you for giving us this opportunity to learn, just how I did, and because of that, they got interested in more books, and now they're reading more and they're learning about leadership, and they're in a leadership role currently, which means that now they could put this into practice, and then their peers they could teach them the same thing.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_01: So it kind of started a chain reaction with leaders, and it's pretty cool because it's uh I mean I get to check up on them and see how they're doing, and they're all kicking butt.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_01: It's awesome.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_00: That's fantastic.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_00: And you shared with us uh uh a number of the folks in this group are immigrants and had some professional frustration that they felt that they had kind of you know hit a ceiling in their their career and have been able to push past that with the leadership.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: Right, right, right.
• 17:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so what we did is we we try to advocate as much as we can with them for them, and we would even prov we went as far as translating papers for them so they understood, you know, they understood it in their language, and we just wanted to make sure that they understood exactly what we were trying to teach them that way they didn't feel like they were trapped, you know.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um I got to see it from my parents.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_01: Thank God my mom figured it out and she's doing really good for herself.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_01: But in the beginning, she would be embarrassed because she didn't speak Spanish.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_01: I mean she didn't speak English, and I she would tear up and cry.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_01: I was her translator as a kid, you know, and that would break my heart.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_01: So then as a leader and being in that role, seeing that with some of our people, it would break my heart.
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_01: So I would be like, what do I need to do to help these people?
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_01: And Jeff and I would come together and come up with a solution, and next thing you know, we would present it to them, and you could just see it in their face, they're like the relief, like, oh man, they're doing everything they can to help me understand what I need to do.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_01: And then from there, it's not that they're not hardworking, it was just like they couldn't really understand.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_01: So now once they understand, then they just run with it.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_01: And next thing you know, like I said, we have some of them that are leaders now, which is super awesome to see.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's that's fantastic.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for sharing that.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_00: All right, so you have a uh big department that you're a part of that uh Randy Thomas leads for us.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, sir.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_00: What are some of the successes of the maintenance and operations department?
• 19:18
  SPEAKER_00: There's lots.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, the guys are very driven, they're always looking to for knowledge, they're always getting new certifications, they're always pushing to be better.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, we we've had these major projects where unfortunately, you know, the the the time and the resources weren't there before.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_01: So now we have the time and the resources, so they've been taking care of stuff that not not necessarily has been neglected, but it's just out of old age needed to be taken care of.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: And uh some of these guys take on these projects happily and they come up with solutions.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_01: They're like, what do you think about this?
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_01: What do you think about that?
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_01: And a lot of the times they save a lot of money for the district because they're willing to go and figure it out and get it done, and they get it done at a professional level, and it's just awesome.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_01: This was my first summer in charge of this department, and I got to work really closely with them, and I was so impressed on how technical and how professional these gentlemen are.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's it's incredible.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm so proud of my team.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_00: That's fantastic.
• 20:21
  SPEAKER_00: Uh one of the things that really impresses me is um how people can see a connection between their work, uh, even if it's not in the classroom, to the success of our kids.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_00: So, as a leader in maintenance and operations, how does your department contribute to student learning and support kids?
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I mean, making sure that the buildings are warm when it's cold, making sure that the buildings are cold when it's hot, you know, um that's a big deal right now, right?
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_01: It is, and there's research, right?
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_00: You don't learn as well.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and you know, making sure that, you know, security is a big deal right now, right?
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_01: And understandably.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: So making sure the doors are locking, making sure that everything is working properly, making sure the restrooms are running properly, you know, making sure that they're being cleaned.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's it's it's a 24-hour-a-day job that needs to get done daily for the facility to be nice and ready for the students on the following day, so they could just show up, do their learning, the teachers show up, do their teaching, and they don't have to worry about anything but what they have to do.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel like our team is pretty on point with that.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a baseball fan, and and an expression in baseball is you know the umpire is doing a good job if you don't notice their work.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_01: And they are behind you you would never know that they're there.
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_01: A lot of the times they're here before anyone shows up taking care of business on the weekends, on Saturdays and Sundays.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_01: We had that striping um project here that they showed up, my my painting team showed up on a Saturday and took care of it, right?
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_01: You guys showed up on Monday.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: And it was done.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like a lot of the work that we do is behind closed doors.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, no one would ever know that we showed up, they just see the end product.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_01: So shout out to the whole maintenance department, you know, they're they're doing their thing.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you've described a number of things that happen behind the scenes that we don't see.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I can tell you, uh, one of my favorite things to do right before school starts is I'll go to a school uh and just take a picture down the hallway, and you just see like the that wonderful shiny floor reflection.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: And to me, that's like one of those signs that follows here, and we're ready to have kids back.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_00: Uh but how does that happen?
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_01: A lot of dedication and hard work.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh our guys are working all day long to make that happen.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_01: You know, those floors have to get sometimes stripped, rewaxed, polished.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_01: There's lots of floors.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_01: You know, look at Auburn High School, it's all floors.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_01: So that that's uh that's weeks and weeks of someone with a buffing machine or a side-by-side just grinding to make it happen.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_00: I've been trying to remember the number and I'm doing math in my head.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_00: I know we have over two million square foot.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, sir.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: That's a lot to do.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's a lot, you know, and we have schools where, you know, like Bowman Creek, uh, Willow Crest, bigger schools, they're newer schools, that in reality there's two, three custodians cleaning that entire building in the summer.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_01: And the summers are short, they're getting shorter every year, too.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, a lot of the times they're a little stressed out, they're freaking out because they can't meet their timelines, but they always figure out a way to make it happen.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_01: And it's the same thing with the maintenance crew, right?
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_01: Major projects, we have to save them for the summer because it's disruptive.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_01: It requires us to take out a wall, replace a door, replace a window, and we can't do that during class because it it's disruptive.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_01: So these guys put in, you know, overtime weekends and early days, late days, just to get it done for that day that the teachers show up and the students show up, that it's ready and they don't have to worry about anything but just doing what they have to do.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_01: It's pretty awesome to see.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_00: So we value uh people doing hard work, uh, many different pathways after high school.
• 24:21
  SPEAKER_00: And we talk about uh careers, trades, military, two-year schools, four-year schools.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of we I really believe that you need some form of education or training beyond high school.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_00: High school diploma itself is not enough anymore.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but there's so many viable routes to a family wage job to do something that's really important work and contributes and uh makes a living where you can uh feed a family and and uh pay your rent or or purchase a home.
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_00: For those who are listening who are s also supporters of current technical education, uh what can you say about that pathway and the people you work with who who really do work in the trades?
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_01: I say go for it.
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_01: Man, um you're you're absolutely right.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_01: You need more than just a high school diploma nowadays to do something.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it doesn't matter what it is, anything, you know, the trades.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: Some people go for careers for the money, right?
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_01: And I've met a lot of people that um have really cool careers, really high titles, but they are miserable.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and if you're good with your hands, and you know, for me, school was not my favorite thing in the world, right?
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_01: So I needed to figure out a plan B.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and luckily for me, I had other skills that my father taught me that were able to get me through, and I'm able to implement those skills right now in the current role that I'm in.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but for a lot of us, you know, school is not the it we're it's just not as exciting.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_01: But what that means is that we still have our hands that we could use.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_01: So, like for example, I were in high school, the programs you guys have there are so cool, like auto shop, welding, you could get out of here already with the certification and go straight to work.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_01: How awesome is that?
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that used to not happen.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: And these are jobs that make over a hundred thousand dollars a year, so you could provide for your family, you could have a nice cool trip out there, and it just requires dedication, hard work, and an interest.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: And just because you don't have that fancy title, that doesn't make you less than anyone else.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_01: It just means that you just found something that works for you and that is then you're able to provide and and for your family, and you're able to be successful in in interest that an interest that you're in.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I feel like that's very important.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_01: The trades are behind the behind the scenes is kind of what happens, right?
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: Your car breaks down, there's got to be a mechanic to fix it, right?
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: You you should uh your plumbing's backed up because you gotta hire a plumber, you know, and uh it's not the most glamorous job in the world, but guess what?
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_01: Those guys make money, you know, and they make lots of money.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_01: So it just uh I feel like sometimes uh our parents push us to say, you need to go to college, you need to go do it.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_01: But it's not always the path for everyone.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_01: There is an option B, which would be the trades, you know, if that's what you're interested in.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_01: And if if you follow through with it in a matter of a f you know, a couple years, you're out running making good money, and on top of that, you're building a skill that's actually gonna bring something to the table.
• 27:24
  SPEAKER_01: It's something that's gonna help a lot of people.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that's that's kind of how I feel about that.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you said it very well.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_00: And the other thing that I enjoy uh being the host of the recess is asking people, what was your favorite thing to do at recess?
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_01: Hmm.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_01: Soccer, playing soccer.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Southern California, soccer's big out there, right?
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_01: It's nice and sunny all the time, and and I'm never I was never really into football or basketball, but soccer was my thing.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_01: So uh, you know, in my culture, soccer's huge, they call it football.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_01: Uh so um we we would get every recess, we would have our little games, you know, all we would show up to class all sweaty and everything, but that that's what we did every single recess.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_01: We played soccer.
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and that was all the way until until college.
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_00: And uh from what I understand, uh knowing you a little bit, uh what you play today is drums.
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, sir.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_00: What's your favorite kind of music?
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_00: Do you have a favorite song?
• 28:25
  SPEAKER_01: So uh I'm I'm a little I like to play a little bit of everything, but my favorite band would be though the police, and my favorite drummer would be Stuart Copeland.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's that's my idol there.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_00: How about that?
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and uh my generation.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_01: Oh man, I love that music, man.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_01: Classic rock is the best, uh, you know.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I guess my music is considered classic rock now too, so that's crazy.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, you know, I I I did a little bit of everything.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_01: I lit I did regional Mexican music too.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I did a little bit of uh salsa, bachata.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so I also followed a lot of the stuff from my culture just because I wanted to learn those beats and that rhythm, you know.
• 29:04
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, but my main thing was um rock.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I was in a cover band, I was also in a different band where we did our own um, it was a Latin rock band.
• 29:13
  SPEAKER_01: We could we were called the Stereophobicos.
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_01: And uh it was mainly an homage to a band that we like called Mana.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_01: And Mana was a little closer to the police, you know.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_01: They followed the roots of the police.
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_01: So it was uh it's it the the drummer's name is Alex Gonzalez.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_01: That was another one of my idols, and uh just through through music, I was able to um keep myself out of the streets, you know.
• 29:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um keep myself um, you know, if I had a rough day, and I still do this until this day.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_01: I have my drum set in my garage.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_01: If I have a rough day, I go play drums.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_01: And next thing you know, I'm relaxed.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_01: You know, music, I get lost in music, and thank God that my my daughter's following the foot.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_01: She's not a drummer, but she likes to sing, and it's it's really cool to see that she's she uses music as a as a path to to get yourself calm and and try to get your head straight a little.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's it's just a passion of mine, and that's one of those things that I'm gonna do until I can't.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate you sharing that side of yourself.
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'm I'm thinking about uh the you know, like the little kid who sees our teacher in the grocery store and they're like, Don't you live at school?
• 30:23
  SPEAKER_00: And all of our employees have these really fascinating talents and lives outside of work as well.
• 30:28
  SPEAKER_00: So Sergio, thanks for inviting us into yours for a few minutes.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_00: No problem, no problem.
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_00: Our guest has been Sergio Rios, coordinator of maintenance for the Auburn School District, uh, doing a fantastic job.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_00: His whole team does a great job keeping our schools uh clean and up to date and safe, as Sergio mentioned, is so important.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_00: And we're just so incredibly proud, and we think we have a great track record of keeping our buildings in excellent shape.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so, Sergio, thank you for being with us.
• 31:02
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for having me, sir.
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_00: And this has been the Recess Podcast.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, the listeners, for listening.
• 31:08
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, thanks to Vicky Alonzo who produces these podcasts.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_00: As I mentioned at the beginning, please tell somebody about this episode.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Sergio has a great story to tell, and uh, we want to get his whole team story out there in our community.
• 31:22
  SPEAKER_00: They do amazing work supporting our kids, supporting our teachers, and ultimately supporting our entire Auburn community.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_00: This has been the Recess Podcast, and I look forward to joining you next time.