2:14 p.m. It’s almost time to leave for work, yet night custodian Ana Cortez finds herself faltering by the doorway of her kitchen. The savory smell of her homemade chicken stew has caught her attention, and a smile tugs at her lips. Her children will be excited to enjoy their all-time favorite meal for dinner. Cortez hesitates, torn between the thought and the flashing 2:15 on her watch display, before dragging herself toward the door. Even though she’s already said her goodbyes, leaving her children is never easy. It will be morning when Cortez sees her family again.

On a typical workday, Cortez’s day begins at 6 a.m., when she prepares her children for school. She works at Monta Vista High School from 3 to 11:30 p.m. and goes to sleep around 12:30 a.m. As a result of the late hours night custodians work, College and Career Adviser Rogelio Calderon believes that their efforts are often unnoticed and thus under-appreciated.

“The work that our custodial staff do at Monta Vista is very essential,” Calderon said. “Our students could definitely do a better job about appreciating our custodial staff, even if it’s just a quick little ‘Hello,’ or just ‘Thank you,’ or just a smile. A lot of times our students assume that someone else is going to clean their mess up for them. Someone’s role can be to help keep our campus clean, but it’s not their role to clean up after students’ messes.”

Calderon recalls one lunch in which he saw a large puddle of spilled milk on the ground and felt disappointed in the students who didn’t clean up after themselves. Cortez has seen similar situations before but acknowledges that while there are ups and downs, she is appreciative of her job.

“I love this school,” Cortez said. “Every staff member makes you feel welcome with a smile, talks to you with respect and makes you feel important. And working here, you get inspired too. With the kids here being very educated, it’s given me ideas on how to direct my children to pursue college. I’ve also gotten good ideas from teachers on what my children could do.”

Cortez says Calderon played an integral role in helping her daughter Jasmine Cortez Rodriguez register for college after she graduated high school. As someone who registered for college but did not attend, Cortez is grateful that her daughter’s educational experience will be more extensive than her own. She is also happy that Rodriguez has a quiet place where she can focus on studying, because Cortez lacked this in high school.

“The janitors would do their jobs, but the kids were a little bit more wild,” Cortez said. “There was a lot of graffiti in the bathrooms. It wasn’t really welcoming. It didn’t feel like a safe place. I think if I would have had this type of environment like MVHS where everybody is so focused, I would have probably .”

Cortez believes MVHS’s emphasis on the importance of education has impacted her own views. For example, Cortez believes a longtime hope of hers — more future career opportunities — is achievable through a strong education. As a result, she’s reinforced the importance of education onto her own children.

“My mom just wants what’s best for all her kids,” Rodriguez said. “She wants us to do greater things. She checks up on us with our school life and personal life. She’s involved in our interests and if I feel like giving up or just quitting something, she tells me, ‘You’ll get there’ and ‘Try again.’”

Rodriguez shares the lessons she’s learned with her four younger siblings. Proudly calling herself the “third parent,” she spends much of her afternoons cooking and caring for her younger siblings, helping them with homework or personal challenges. Rodriguez credits these experiences, along with the influence of exceptional teachers throughout her life, for inspiring her dream of becoming a teacher. Most of all, she credits Cortez for the ceaseless support that led to her current enrollment in college. Calderon agrees, acknowledging the importance of strong, unwavering support in a family.

“Ana’s family is very lucky to have her,” Calderon said. “She is a very welcoming person and has a very generous heart, and I definitely think she is someone that you feel safe and comfortable around. When you’re able to feel comfortable and safe around someone, that definitely says a lot about an individual and who they are as a person.”

Much like Rodriguez, Cortez draws the strength to pursue her long-term goals from her family, which include securing leadership positions and purchasing a house. Cortez’s future hopes extend to her children as well, especially to Rodriguez now that she is enrolled at De Anza.

“A possible timeline is that my daughter goes to college, and then my other kids see that and look up to her, so she’d lead the way and they’d be right behind her,” Cortez said. “I’m happy that they’re having that opportunity, something I didn’t have for myself. I’m very proud of her and all my kids. We’re very close. As a big family unit, there’s good and there’s bad, but in the end, we’re there for each other.”

This story was originally published on El Estoque on January 27, 2025.