Second Annual 'Custodians Are Key' Contest Seeks Nominations

Tennant Company, a manufacturing and marketing solutions based company in the cleaning industry, launched the second annual Custodians Are Key campaign. The eight-month campaign recognizes the work of K-12 custodians across the country and honors them and their school with a $15,000 prize package. The program launched September 15 and concludes on May 14, 2021.

“We were overwhelmed by the positive response to our first Custodians are Key campaign,” Lisa Hrpcek, Marketing Manager at Tennant Company said in a press release. “The quality of candidates was amazing – clearly many custodians are making huge differences in their schools. Now, with the additional challenges brought on by the pandemic, the need for clean facilities has never been more important. And that makes our custodians even more critical to the health of their schools and their students. We are excited to build off last year’s successful program to honor these valuable front-line workers.”

The first round of nominations is open until November 15. Twelve finalists will be chosen and will receive a $500 gift card. Tennant will select a grand prize winner from the finalists pool. 

Tennant seeks nominations of school custodians who are making their schools better. Teachers, administrators, and parents are encouraged to nominate a custodian by filling out this form. A panel of judges from Tennant will select finalists and winners based on the quality of the nomination and the impact the custodian has made at their school. 

Kris Kantor, custodian at Hayes Elementary in Lakewood, Ohio, was awarded the grand prize this past June. Kantor was one of 2,000 nominees during the inaugural program.

About the Author

Yvonne Marquez is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Girl Sitting at Library Desk, Using Laptop

    How Campus Design Shapes the Finals Week Experience

    Academic performance is not just about preparation. It is closely tied to how students manage stress, maintain their energy, and shift between work and recovery modes. Much of that is influenced, directly or indirectly, by design.

  • Colorado School District Breaks Ground on Unified PK–12 Campus

    The Haxtun School District No. Re-2J in Haxtun, Colo., recently announced that ground has been broken on a renovation/addition project that will unite its two schools, Haxtun Elementary and Haxtun Jr/Sr High School, according to a news release.

  • Baton Rouge Center for Visual and Performing Arts

    Baton Rouge Center for Visual and Performing Arts

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The Baton Rouge Center for Visual and Performing Arts has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Project of Distinction award in the category of New Construction.

  • Nashville Elementary School Receives LEED Gold Certification

    Goodlettsville Elementary School, part of Metro Nashville Public Schools in Nashville, Tenn., recently achieved LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), according to a news release. The 81,750-square-foot school opened in 2023 and was designed by Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC).