WEEKLY COMMUNICATION FOR PRINCIPALS

The idea of the weekly communication for Principals is to keep them micro informed in a manner that enables them to be able to answer questions from staff and parents. This helpful communication will allow more time for them to focus on the education of students. This form of communication will build trust and confidence that you are on top of managing the physical building. There are four topics that the principal should be updated on each week. Some weeks there will be no updates on one or more topics. It is recommended that this communication is provided via email at either the end of the day on Friday or the first thing on Monday mornings. Using these four bullet points is an easy-to-read way to keep them updated in an organized and professional manner. Note: Some Principals may prefer to have a weekly meeting with you instead of or in addition to this weekly email. Additionally, it is recommended that these emails are shared with the Office Manager/Secretary, Athletic Director, and/or Assistant Principals. You should ask the principal who all he or she would like copied on this form of communication.  

 

• WORK ORDERS: Give the Principal an update on open and closed work orders from the week. In some cases, the Head Custodian has the ability to share a weekly report from a work order system or they can show the principal how to check work orders on their own if they have access. It is encouraged to ask them what form and type of information they would like on work orders. In the event no new work orders are completed or requested for the week, let them know there were no changes in the work order status from the previous week.

 

• CUSTODIAL STAFF UPDATES: Give the Principal updates on upcoming vacations, vacancies, new staff members (start dates), resignations/retirements (last day of work), etc. and your plans for coverage. This may include a deferred cleaning plan. If that is the case, let them know what that entails. As an example, your team might forgo a task that is normally done daily. This should also include any hour changes for the custodial staff. If there are no changes for the upcoming week, then let them know there are no staff updates to report.

 

 

• UPCOMING PROJECTS: It is important to keep the principal in the loop of upcoming plans/projects. Examples of plans/projects that need to be communicated are maintenance work that effects power to the building, water flow, and temperature control. Additionally, it’s important to share plans over breaks (Fall, Winter, Spring), such as deep cleaning of restrooms, burnishing or carpet cleaning of corridors, painting, etc. If there is a single non-contact day for students, projects planned for those days should be communicated as well. Completion dates are an added piece of information that is valued by the principal. This is important information that instills confidence in the Head Custodian as the building manager. If there are no upcoming projects for the week let them know there are no scheduled projects; however, it’s recommended that they are notified as much in advance as possible. As an example, if your team is going to paint the main hallway over Winter Break, you would want to give at least a two or four week notice so staff can remove items from the walls in time for the work to be done. Similarly, if you are refinishing a wood gym floor over Spring Break, you would want to give as much notice as possible, as this can impact scheduling of events such as basketball or volleyball games or practices. In that case you would also want to include the dates the gym will be closed.

 

• TEACHER/STAFF UPDATES: This is where the Head Custodian gives information to the principal to share with staff that helps with the operation of the building and makes custodial tasks more achievable. Items that should be shared are upcoming fire or board of health inspections, reminders for teachers to stack chairs, storage concerns, issues or items written up from inspections, building hours during non-contact times, changes in frequencies or times/days tasks are completed, etc. Keeping your principal informed of these things help the building run more smoothly. Some Principals will entrust in the Head Custodian to communicate this information directly with staff, while other prefer that you inform them, and they will pass on the information. Establish with them how they prefer this communicated. Either way, this information should be a part of the weekly communication.