Behind the Bells: How GPS Gets Ready for Back to School

From getting school supplies to finding the perfect clothes, preparing for back to school is no small task for families. While families are preparing for school, so are the campuses and departments across Gilbert Public Schools (GPS). Dedicated to ensuring our campuses and services are ready for the school year, GPS staff work all summer long to help our students succeed. These are just some of the stories of how our GPS team gets ready for back to school.

Ron Sessions, GPS Transportation Technician II 

Throughout the year, school bus technicians like Ron Sessions are on the front lines of ensuring student transportation is seamless and safe for the 7000 plus GPS students who ride the bus every day to get to and from school. During the summer, his days start at 6 AM and are packed with ensuring every single bus is functioning for the school year. The mechanics perform a quality check on each of the 190 buses in the GPS fleet - starting every engine, checking every AC, and reporting any maintenance that needs to be completed. These checks are crucial for preparing for the school year, as GPS buses travel over 11,000 miles daily and approximately 2,245,000 miles per year. 

Ron, who specializes in ACs, works on a diverse fleet of buses, adapting to different models and motors while constantly learning new ways to repair and maintain the vehicles. Ron and the transportation team also work to ensure processes are in place for best maintaining buses once the school year begins. This includes making sure the team is ready to respond to any on-road issues and dispatching a replacement bus or towing the vehicle as needed.

Jesse Luna, Building Manager

For Jesse Luna, the building manager at Mesquite Junior High, preparing for a new school year begins before the previous school year ends. Two weeks prior to summer break, Luna is already assessing and ordering essential supplies that will need to be refilled, like floor wax and toilet paper, in anticipation of the intensive work ahead. Once school ends, his team completes a comprehensive cleaning process: changing every light, wiping down walls, and moving all tables and chairs outside for thorough washing and disinfecting. Every floor on campus is vacuumed, shampooed, and if needed, stripped and rewaxed with at least three coats of wax.

Summer at Mesquite Junior High is busy with VIK and free lunch programs. This requires Luna and his team to take a strategic approach, prioritizing the cleaning and disinfection of rooms used for these programs within the first week of summer. At the same time, Luna repairs broken objects, removes unneeded equipment, and organizes classrooms so teachers return to a clean and fully functioning classroom, ready to arrange their spaces. A significant task for Luna involves changing all 360 of Mesquite Junior’s HVAC filters, which takes a full week and many hours on the roof. Luna and his team also diagnose HVAC issues, paint any needed areas, and ensure high-touch surfaces are regularly disinfected with non-toxic solutions. Ultimately, Luna works to guarantee students and staff return to school with a safe, clean, and welcoming environment.

Jonathan Jimenez, School Kitchen Manager

The Nutrition Services department plays an important role in student readiness, ensuring that every child has access to nutritious meals that fuel their minds and bodies throughout the school day. For Jonathan Jimenez, a School Kitchen Manager at Carol Rae Ranch, a school day typically involves an early start to prepare fresh breakfast options, followed by placing food orders and tallying lunch choices to ensure future preparation is accurate. His team then pans and cooks hot lunch items, prepares fresh fruits and vegetables for the salad bar, arranges condiments, and assembles various lunch packs. Once meals are served to hundreds of students, the focus shifts to cleaning serving lines, counting leftovers, washing dishes, and completing essential health department paperwork for food safety.

During the summer, GPS Nutrition Services leadership is working to prepare for the school year. First, they arrange food shipments for the upcoming year, revise menus, submit applications to the USDA for program approvals, and conduct job fairs to hire new staff. Before school officially begins, managers like Jonathan attend meetings for regulation updates, print menus and meal applications, and participate in Back to School and Meet the Teacher events. Behind the scenes, the department communicates with families and school nurses regarding student allergies and carbohydrate counts, coordinates with school staff for events, and even decorates kitchens to create a welcoming environment. Their efforts all work to ensure that nutritious meals are ready from day one, supporting student well-being and academic success.

Charlotte Gandy, Advantage Preschool Teacher

For Charlotte Gandy, an Advantage Preschool Teacher at Harris Elementary, preparing for the school year involves meticulously crafting a welcoming and accessible learning environment. She dedicates several days to setting up her classroom, ensuring every area—from blocks and dramatic play to sensory bins—is clean, organized, and ready for young learners. As the Advantage Preschool curriculum emphasizes "learning through play," Gandy changes a dramatic play area of her classroom every month to explore themes like a grocery store or space. This dramatic play area is used to foster social-emotional skills, imagination, and even early math concepts. Gandy also creates visuals and labels for her three, four, and five-year-olds who are still learning to read, making the classroom accessible and easy to navigate for her students.

Beyond the physical setup, Gandy's preparation for "Meet the Teacher" is extensive. As Advantage Preschool is a licensed program, she prepares paperwork, including detailed welcome packets covering everything from sick policies to daily snacks. She also creates personalized "meet me" sheets, supply lists, and typed-up calendars to clarify the preschool schedule, which can differ from the main school calendar. Much of her behind-the-scenes work involves printing and laminating visuals, ensuring that schedules, activity areas, and even a "relax corner" with emotional visuals are accessible for her students.

Gilbert Public Schools is excited to welcome students back to class on Tuesday, July 22, for the district’s 112th year of educating children in Gilbert and Mesa! For more Back to School information, including the Annual Update, bell schedules, and more, visit GilbertSchools.net.