Female janitor mopping floor in school hallway. Cleaning services concept.

Cintas Corporation is now accepting nominations for its seventh-annual Custodian of the Year contest, which honors the best-of-the-best among school custodians.

Created to celebrate custodians who go above and beyond to support school cleanliness and student well-being, the contest awards $10,000 to the winning custodian and $5,000 in Cintas and Rubbermaid products and services to the winner’s school. The winner’s school will also receive a comprehensive training and development package from ISSA, The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association, valued at $20,000. An additional nine finalists will receive $1,000 each and free tuition to one ISSA Cleaning Management Institute (CMI) training event, valued at $1,500.

“By maintaining school facilities, custodians provide students, staff and visitors with a clean and healthy environment that supports learning,” said Christiny Betsch, Marketing Manager, Cintas. “Many are also the backbone of their school community, going the extra mile in everything they do. This contest highlights the important work custodians do each day.”

The Cintas Custodian of the Year contest is open to all elementary, middle, high school and university custodians who have worked at their school for at least two years. Nominations must be 500 words or less on why the nominee is deserving of the award and submitted by March 2. Cintas is announcing the top 10 finalists on March 16. The public can vote for their favorite custodian through April, and the finalist with the most votes will be crowned Custodian of the Year.

“Custodians do much more than clean,” said John Barrett, Executive Director, ISSA. “They protect children in schools, elderly in long-term care facilities, guests in hotels, visitors in stores and so much more by creating clean, healthy and safe environments. ISSA is committed to changing the way the world views cleaning, and we are honored to help Cintas recognize dedicated custodians across the country.”

Rubbermaid Commercial Products’ Vice President of Marketing, Marta Aebischer, added: “We are proud to partner with Cintas to showcase the 2020 Custodian of the Year. We realize how important their hard work is to our communities and we are committed to providing innovative solutions that make their jobs easier and safer.”

Nominations are being accepted at http://www.custodianoftheyear.com/.

Cintas has also began receiving nominations for its 2020 America’s Best Restroom Contest.