Last summer, as the district faced a massive budget deficit, Chicago Public Schools cut nearly 500 custodian positions, or close to one-fifth of full-time staffers who cleaned schools, and ended all private custodial contracts.
Then, three months into this school year, complaints rolled in through a district survey of 168 principals and 423 custodians: Three-quarters of principals indicated they didn’t have enough custodians on staff to meet their cleaning needs, and at least 40% asked the district for more staff. Nearly two-thirds of custodians said their tasks were difficult to manage given the size of their buildings and the number of people on their team.
The survey responses from late November, obtained by Chalkbeat through a Freedom of Information Act request, are a window into how the custodial staffing changes have impacted school cleanliness — and the potential challenges ahead in maintaining hygienic environments for kids and staff. Many custodians signaled that they were not equipped to clean schools well. Principals said they were picking up trash and cleaning spills or vomit. A few schools had new pest issues…