(June 11, 2010) — For the past 12 years, Clark’s campus has been praised for its cleanliness. Part of the reason is its responsible and respectful students, but the biggest credit should be given to head custodian Ramona Rodriguez. Rodriguez is usually the first person on campus, arriving at 6:30 a.m., a time when many students are just waking up. “I have to get here early so I can open gates, turn on the lights and assist teachers,” Rodriguez said. It was by chance that she ended up at Clark; her first job was working at Glendale Adventist Hospital. However, it was not an enjoyable experience for Rodriguez. “If someone didn’t come to work one day, I had to fill in and do their job,” Rodriguez said. While working as a teacher’s assistant, her advisor recommended that she take a look at working as a janitor. “I decided to work as a janitor because the pay was good and I got weekends off; I needed time off to take care of my kids. It came with good health insurance benefits too,” Rodriguez said. “This is a pretty school, everyone respects each other. I like it here because if you hang something on the wall, it stays.” Being a janitor, Rodriguez admits, is not a job for everyone. “It is a very physical job. You have to be flexible and attend to where you need to, and you have to remember to be careful just like every other job,” Rodriguez said. Over the past 12 years Rodriguez has worked at Clark, she has built up quite a list of responsibilities: ordering supplies, contacting gardeners, technicians and locksmiths and making sure toilets and faucets are working. “If something goes wrong in the building, it is up to me since I am in charge,” Rodriguez said. The key to success as a janitor is getting along with students, teachers and other custodians. As one of Rodriguez’s co-workers and close friends, custodian Nora Valencia can tell you that she is a “hardworking and patient lady.” “I’ve known her for seven years. I know her life story and she knows mine,” Valencia said, laughing. “At first I had to adjust myself to work with her. We had arguments and communication problems, but we built up a lot of respect for each other,” Valencia said. “I was shocked to find out that she was retiring. People would ask me if she was retiring, and I would say I don’t think so.” In a meeting in May, Rodriguez announced to her crew that she was retiring. “Twenty-five years working as a janitor is a long time since it is a very physical job,” Rodriguez said. “I plan to travel with my sisters and go places I’ve never been.”