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SUMMER WORK
Getting ready for school year
MUSD SUMMER MAINTAINCE1 6-11-16
Stella Brockman School Head Custodian Mauro Lopez uses the new eco-friendly Speed-SQ 14 Orbital Floor Machine in a classroom. It uses technology that electrically converts water into an innovative cleaning solution that cleans more effectively, saves money, and reduces environmentally impact compared to traditional floor cleaning chemicals. An on-board e-cell generates millions of microscopic bubbles that promote the efficiency of the solution used. - photo by HIME ROMERO/The Bulletin

School’s out for the summer.

That means no break for the Manteca Unified support staff — from maintenance crews to those that labor at the district office tackling everything from curriculum, budgeting, technology, transportation, and operations to nutritional services — working to make sure everything is ready for 3,000 employees and 23,500 students to hit the ground running when the new school year starts Aug. 4.

The task for those working at the district’s 30 campuses is obvious. It is time for deep cleaning and doing routine maintenance repairs and sprucing up campuses that weathered 23,500 young people for 180 days.

But the effort at the district office may not be as apparent although in many ways their workload increases wrapping up one school year and starting another. It’s much like what teachers and site administrators do but due to the nature of the work it doesn’t stop.

This year the two weeks when the district office went dark in past summers to reduce energy costs won’t happen. The personnel department, as an example, needs to process teacher payroll as instructors are paid year round, there are other employees working in the summer, and the district needs to get new hires in place for the opening of school.

“Personnel gets too far behind when we close in the summer,” Superintendent Jason Messer noted.

The summer closure was one way the district dealt with a severe loss of revenue after the housing crisis triggered state budget shortfalls starting in 2008.

In addition to deep cleaning and smaller projects, the summer maintenance teams for Manteca are overseeing or conducting:

ureplacing the roof on the East Union High science wing.

ureplacing the roofs on seven buildings at Sierra High.

ureplacing the Shasta School playground.

ureplacing the Golden West School playground.

ureplacing and repairing floors in 26 classrooms at 11 sites.

upouring a concrete walkway at Mossdale School.

upouring concrete walkway at Woodward School.

urevising the Woodward School parking lot striping.

 

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com