Past 9 p.m., a group of people wipe the windows, take out the trash and clean the floors in a building without any teachers or students. They are the custodians — and Head Custodian and Building Manager Tuan Vo manages them all.
“He’s very kind,” custodian Jessica Franco said. “He tries to help other people. When someone has an issue, he listens to both sides. I see that other bosses only send people to work, but he also helps us with our jobs.”
Having joined CHS on April 1, Vo manages 19 custodians across a morning and evening shift. He recognizes the importance of a clean school, which is proven to affect students’ performance. According to the California State Auditor, when schools lack or fall behind on maintenance, rates of absenteeism and illness increase while average test scores decrease.
“I have to create a good environment for anybody, not only for my team but to make a good, safe place for the student and the family,” Vo said. “When the parents come here, they always feel this school is really clean and feel welcome. It’s very important.”
While at CHS, Vo often thinks back to his experience at Greenbriar West Elementary School. Previously, he was the building supervisor there, where he often interacted with students.
“Every single day when I worked over there, the kids said, ‘Hi, my friend,’” Vo said. “Oh my goodness, you cannot imagine how happy they are with you. Oh man, they made me smile every single day. Later, all the kids come here. I want to see them again. That’s the reason why I applied for this school.”
Here, he is responsible for building repairs and other seasonal maintenance throughout the school year. Although his job involves managing a 380,175 square-foot building, Vo finds managing his team of 19 the hardest part of his job, especially when conflicts arise. According to him, in these situations, he aims to resolve issues with understanding.
“You must work with them and treat them and talk to them from your heart,” Vo said. “By your heart is the most important. When you work with a human, you must use your heart. The important thing is you must be fair first.”
On Dec. 5, Vo was named CHS’s operational employee of the year. Winners are chosen through nominations from staff members and students to recognize individuals who go above and beyond in the building.
“He’s one of those people, when he walks in the room, everyone always feels better,” Director of Student Activities Brendan Shapiro said. “I’m lucky that I get to interact with him every day, and I always come away from even a brief interaction with him feeling better than I did before he walked in the room. He just brings a great positive energy and enthusiasm to every interaction.”
Per the Institute of Education Sciences, public schools had, on average, filled 74% of custodial positions for the 2024-25 school year. According to Vo, during school events, work days can end close to midnight if multiple employees take vacations or call in sick, since people need to cover for each other.
“This is my second house, my second home,” Vo said. “Every single day when I come here, I feel like I want to make this a safe place and make this school a good place for anybody. It’s enough for me. When I walk, sometimes I’m very tired. But the thing is, if everything is good here, it makes me feel very happy.”
