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San Marcos Unified administrators shadow classified employees in annual recognition day
Summary
Administrators in San Marcos Unified participated in a classified employee shadowing day to recognize and learn about the work of custodians, bus drivers, library media technicians, instructional aides and other classified staff; district officials said the program, done in collaboration with CSEA last year, will continue annually.
San Marcos Unified School District administrators spent part of the day shadowing classified employees across district campuses to learn about jobs such as child nutrition service, bus drivers, custodial staff, library media technicians and instructional assistants, speakers said.
District staff described the event as a chance for supervisors and managers to get hands-on experience with classified roles and to build appreciation for work that supports students and daily operations. "A stands for appreciating classified employees," one staff member said, noting the program highlights the variety of roles classified employees perform.
Speakers said the shadowing started last year in collaboration with CSEA and was so well received the district intends to make it an annual event. "We did it last year in collaboration with CSEA and it was a great success," a staff member said. "So much so that we decided that we wanted to do it on a yearly basis."
"This is one of my favorite days of the year," another staff member said. "Classified employee shadowing day where we get to get our comfortable clothes on and go work alongside some of our amazing classified staff all around the district." That speaker described shadowing a custodian at San Marcos High School and emphasized the scale of operations at larger campuses.
A different staff member described shadowing an instructional assistant at San Marcos Middle School and said the experience builds perspective for the executive cabinet and other managers. "Once they come out and actually do the work, I think there's a lot more appreciation for what the classified employees are doing," the speaker said.
Speakers said the program helps classified employees feel appreciated and strengthens connection between administrators and staff, which district presenters and board members hope will support staff retention and professional growth. "They felt special... they feel engaged and they feel connected and that builds that sense of connection with them," one staff member said.
Participants listed a range of classified positions included in the shadowing: child nutrition service staff, bus drivers, library media technicians, custodians, office staff, instructional assistants and KOC staff. The district did not provide a participant count or a schedule of campus visits in the meeting remarks.
Speakers closed by saying the district plans to continue the program annually because of positive reception from both administrators and classified employees. "We're hoping that we'll continue to do this because it was such a well received program last year and everyone seems to love it," a staff member said.
