Constant smile, joyful spirit and 'terrible dad jokes' lift custodian to national finalist

Going above and beyond for those around you can bring special rewards.

Austin Smith, head custodian at Berryton Elementary School, is a finalist for the 5th annual Tennant Co.'s "Custodians are Key contest." The competition honors and recognizes an often-overlooked group — those who keep local schools clean and safe so children can better focus on learning, the company said.

Carrie Deghand, fourth-grade teacher at Berryton Elementary, nominated Smith for the competition saying Smith goes "above and beyond" for the elementary school.

"He's always making sure that the school's clean and he loves interacting with the students and always doing fun things," Deghand said. "And then he also drives a bus, so he does all the things, and he always does it with a smile and always making sure that he gets everything done."

Working as a custodian and bus driver keeps days busy and motivated

In addition to being a head custodian, Smith also is a bus driver for the school and splits his time between the two while being a husband and a father to his 4-year-old daughter. Smith has worked for the Shawnee Heights School District 450 for 11 years while being a custodian for nine of those years.

Smith's typical workday includes preparing the kitchen for breakfast, cleaning the front office and library, then directing the morning drop-off line for children arriving via vehicles, rotating trash cans and more.

"Custodians here at Shawnee Heights ... they require them to have a CDL to run a school bus," Smith said. "We're supposed to be a substitute, but with the national school bus shortage, we've all been kind of assigned a bus route at this point. Some people have morning and afternoon. I just have afternoon."

He was assigned his bus route in 2019. Smith began his career as a custodian as a nighttime custodian for Topeka Public Schools while still being a student at Washburn Rural High School.

Speaking to The Capital-Journal, Smith said the interaction with the students and staff is what keeps him motivated.

"I love what I do," he said, "and the reason why I try to wear a smile even when things are hard is because that might just turn someone's day around and it's something really easy to do. I try to approach any tough situation where people might be stressed out by coming in here, smiling, joke around, tell a terrible dad joke or something.

"It might just make someone's day, and if I can do that, I guess it's a better place."

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Smith is sincere about 'choosing joy very intentionally'

Kyrstin Bervert, Berryton Elementary principal, said, "It's exciting to see Austin be recognized for an award that he's very, very, worthy of."

"He drives a bus, he cleans up vomit, he helps put together furniture, he helps us move furniture," Bervert said. "I mean he does all the things, and he does it with a smile on his face and just really has a servant's heart."

Deghand said one thing she teaches her students is "kindness over everything" and she doesn't think that's a difficult concept for them to understand when it applies to Smith.

"Because he's always approachable and the kids really enjoy interacting with him," Deghand said.

Bervert said Smith really does have fun with the students.

"One of my favorite things in the five years I've been here is seeing him on his Zamboni in an 'Austin Powers' leisure suit just brought so much joy to both the staff and the students," she said. "So, he makes his job joyful, and he chooses joy very intentionally.

"Even when things are hard and it's flu season and he's wiping down classrooms frantically and sanitizing, he still chooses to have that joyful spirit that we love about him."

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What all does the 'Custodians are Key Contest' entail?

Smith is one of 12 finalists announced for the competition. Contenders include those from Ohio, Pennsylvania, California and more.

Smith is the only Kansas finalist.

The competition was launched in 2018 to "recognize rock-start custodians" Over the years, there have been thousands of nominations and we have chosen four grand prize winners and dozens of finalists, The Tennant Co. said.

Smith and the other finalists will receive $500 gift card. The grand prize winner will be announced in May, in which the winner will receive $5,000 for themselves and the school will receive $10,000, the Tennant Co. said.

Keishera Lately is the business reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. She can be reached at klately@cjonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @Lately_KT.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Austin Smith is a finalist in national custodians are key contest