Elvi Olano had been working for only a month as a custodian when she had an experience she鈥檚 never forgotten. While she was cleaning a bathroom, a professor walked in and yelled at her for keeping him, and the students around him, from using it. When she apologized, he said, 鈥淵ou鈥檙e ridiculous.鈥�
Olano, an immigrant from the Philippines, didn鈥檛 have strong English skills at the time, so she didn鈥檛 know what 鈥渞idiculous鈥� meant 鈥� although she could tell he was angry from the tone of his voice. As the students stared at her, she started to cry.
A friend helped her report the incident, and news of it made its way to the department chair. The chair called a meeting the next morning to make it clear behavior like that wasn鈥檛 acceptable. But for Olano, remembering the humiliation still hurts, 16 years later.
鈥淭hey should respect us,鈥� she said, referring to professors, students and all those who benefit from her work.
The is calling on the 黑料吃瓜网 community to do just that. The volunteer-led effort, which is not affiliated with 黑料吃瓜网, is advocating for custodians, lifting their voices and raising awareness about their important roles on campus. As part of the project, an art exhibit called 鈥�(in)Visibility鈥� is hanging in 黑料吃瓜网 Tower through March. It features photos taken by 16 custodians, paired with their testimonials.
The 黑料吃瓜网 Custodian Project was started in March 2020 by Evalynn Fae Taganna Romano, the daughter of two 黑料吃瓜网 custodians who earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree, and master鈥檚 degrees in social work and in public health, from the 黑料吃瓜网. Custodians were continuing to report to work while the COVID-19 pandemic shut down much of campus life.
Inspired by her parents 鈥� who dedicated a total of nearly six decades to cleaning 黑料吃瓜网 buildings 鈥� Romano brought food, coffee, hand-sewn masks and thank-you cards to custodians once a week, with support from friends, businesses and community organizations.
From there, the project grew from a way to show appreciation to include direct services and a larger advocacy effort. Many campus custodians are immigrants, refugees and people of color, groups that often are more vulnerable due to health and social inequities.
鈥淐ustodians might not feel comfortable telling leadership to their face what they need, and I think it’s really important to think about how to create intentional spaces for them to do that,鈥� Romano said. 鈥満诹铣怨贤� has a responsibility to take actions and structure policies that recognize the value and ensure the safety of their essential workers.鈥�
Romano based 鈥�(in)Visibility鈥� on a method she learned about while pursuing her master鈥檚 in public health and later used for her thesis. Called , it incorporates voices of community members in research. She started recruiting participants for photography-based storytelling sessions in August 2020 to learn more about the health impacts of their workplace and home. She then asked custodians to take photos and conducted group sessions with the custodians to collect their testimonials.
The exhibit made its debut in the Art Building in September 2021 鈥� the building Romano鈥檚 mother has been caring for since 1997 鈥� with the idea that it would rotate to a different building on campus each quarter.
The photos, documenting custodians鈥� lives on and off campus, reflect the time we live in. One picture entitled 鈥淢y Yellow Shield鈥� shows a custodian鈥檚 cart. In the accompanying quote, the custodian talks about how the cleaning materials in the cart shield us from COVID-19.
Gina Tabasan took a picture of one of the surgical masks she receives at work each day. “I was thinking, will this help us for preventing COVID?鈥� Tabasan said in an interview. 鈥淥r how will it help if we don’t have the shot yet? How will it help if it鈥檚 wet?”
Olano took a picture of her squash plant. She eats squash every day because 鈥渋t’s one of the fruits that can be a vitamin for health” 鈥� something that has been particularly important to her as she looks for protection from COVID-19.
These photos capture the anxiety custodians experienced during the height of the pandemic.
“It was horrible, it really was,鈥� said a custodian, who wishes to be identified by her initials, K.P. Although 黑料吃瓜网 provided some protective equipment, K.P. said it was unnerving going into an uncertain environment. 鈥淲e didn’t know what we were going to be exposed to. We had to do all this extra deep cleaning.鈥�
Another theme of the exhibit is the pride the custodians have in their work. Photos show clean floors, custodians on the job or the machines they use.
鈥淏eing a custodian is not as easy as people think,鈥� Tabasan said. 鈥淎 nurse or a doctor, they save lives. We save them, too, because without us, buildings are dirty. Students and staff can get sick. We are the army protecting you from the garbage.鈥�
Photos also show things or practices that bring comfort, like birds on campus or a walk during break time. K.P.鈥檚 photo is of artwork with lines from a Native American proverb, reflecting her heritage: 鈥淟ive strong as the mountains. Walk tall as the trees. Be known by the tracks that you leave.鈥�
Romano said her childhood was filled with memories of going to other custodians鈥� homes with her parents. When she was a student, she鈥檇 drop in at lunchtime potlucks. Tabasan and Olano get relief from their jobs by taking breaks together, an activity that has been restricted during the pandemic. Many extend this feeling of camaraderie to the 黑料吃瓜网 community.
鈥淚 can’t speak for all custodians, but I know that there are a lot of them who see people on campus like family, especially the people they interact with,鈥� Romano said. 鈥淢uch like you would with your family, they see it as their job to protect them and make sure that they’re safe and healthy.鈥�
And sometimes people show that the feeling is mutual. Olano remembers a professor who offered to help her with the U.S. citizenship test. Olano was scared that she wouldn鈥檛 be able to pass, but the professor took time to get to know her, which made Olano comfortable enough to try. The professor then tutored her every day for three weeks.
“It was the happiest moment I had here. I passed the citizenship test,鈥� Olano said. 鈥淚 cannot forget her.”
The custodians interviewed for this story say that they don鈥檛 always feel the care they give is returned 鈥� for example, when people throw garbage on the floor. But there are also many who say hello and express thanks, a gesture the custodians all said they appreciate.
“I love to be here. I love to see all the faces. I love to talk. I love to say 鈥榟i鈥� and 鈥榖ye,鈥欌�� said Elsa Tesfai. 鈥淪ome people will talk to you about their lives, and they come to me like a human being. I feel so happy when they tell me their story, because they don’t just say, ‘She’s a custodian. Why do I have to speak with her?’鈥�
Tesfai arrived in the U.S. in 1991 as a refugee from East Africa with two children. She went to community college but for only two quarters. It was hard to get childcare, and she had to take a bus across town. Now, she watches students pursue a dream that wasn鈥檛 available to her. Missing the connection with the people on campus, along with the fear of COVID-19, is what made the height of the pandemic so hard for her.
“It was ugly because no one was here. Even though we got paid, I didn鈥檛 have peace in my heart,鈥� Tesfai said. 鈥淚 have to see them getting their education. For me, if I don’t see them, I’m suffering.”
鈥�(in)Visibility鈥� is on display in 黑料吃瓜网 Tower on the lobby level past the elevators through March 31.