Own Your Seat

“Our employees fully own the role they have in student success. From the classroom teacher, to our mow crews and drivers, I see our employees lead from the job they have.”

Eimear O’Farrell, Ed.D.
CUSD Superintendent

We have high standards in Clovis Unified and are unapologetic for them. We put kids first. We base our decisions around what will best support and encourage our students. Whatever we do, we aim to do it first class. We believe providing children with award-winning, vibrant academic, athletic and performing arts programs along with state-of-the-art facilities sets them up for success.

Our entire 6,000-plus employees share in this vision. We view all our employees as part of the educational team, regardless if they are a
teacher, bus driver, accountant, nurse or custodian. Across the district, we have employees inspiring excellence every day because they are passionate about helping kids. That is our theme for the year – Inspiring Excellence. We celebrate our team members who in some cases quite literally own their seat on the bus and deliberately choose to make a positive impact in the place where they are.

Magnetic appeal

Second-year bus driver Lisa Gassett creates a wonderland in the interior of her bus to engage her special education students. Some kids with limited verbal skills use the alphabet magnets to spell words while others enjoy the light-hearted appearance of magnets shaped like butterflies, bunnies, pumpkins or turkeys. While waiting for aides at a drop off, Gassett points to the magnets teaching students about them and asking questions. “Last year I saw them grow so much... They all become like your kids, and you’d do anything to see them have a good day with a big smile.”

“I was going to mow that field”

Clovis Unified Grounds Supervisor Carlos Aleman laughed when contractors installing a new track surface at Veterans Memorial stadium told him the grounds crew wouldn’t be able to mow or water the stadium field for several weeks. “They didn’t understand what we do. This is Clovis Unified. We’re different. We have a standard that basically no one can match.” With graduations and championship meets at the stadium just around the corner, there was no question that Aleman and his crew would keep the lawn lush. They hand watered berms, used a watering truck for the lawn and mowed at odd hours in order to keep the grass green. “It didn’t matter if it was 3 a.m. or 2 p.m., I was going to mow that field. ...We want kids to be proud of their schools and facilities, and we’re going to take good care of them.”