BES&R May All-Hands Meeting Recap

The people who design, build, clean and maintain buildings at UNC Charlotte have a major impact on the health of students, faculty, staff and visitors. A prominent study on how indoor spaces drive performance and productivity notes that by the time one reaches 80 years old, they will have spent 72 years of their life indoors.

The work of the Building Environmental Services and Recycling (BES&R) team positively impacts the creativity, focus and problem-solving ability of Charlotte students. The BES&R team cares for the built environment to provide a safe and healthy campus by routinely cleaning, recycling and conserving the University's resources.  This team consistently strives to become a first-class, process-oriented and data-driven cleaning and recycling team that consistently delivers excellent proficient and cost-efficient cleaning and recycling services. BES&R is an award-winning program achieving national prominence for the University.

On Wednesday, May 11, BES&R had an all-hands meeting where the team was acknowledged for their great work and valuable contributions to the University. This meeting was led by Solomon T. Franklin, interim director of BES&R, and Tasheem Hayes, interim senior assistant director. This meeting featured many celebratory moments, special presentations, unit and department updates and a tribute to the previous director of the unit.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools within the UNC System and across the country closed while UNC Charlotte remained open. Chancellor Gaber highlighted this and BES&R’s role in keeping everyone safe during the pandemic. Rich Amon, vice chancellor of Business Affairs, also gave encouraging remarks and shared his vision to improve employee success. In addition, Rich Steele, associate vice chancellor for Facilities Management, provided a department update and explained the importance of BES&R in the process of student recruitment and retention. 

BES&R senior supervisor Katherine Humphries was acknowledged for her 2022 Employee of the Year nomination in the Human Relations category. Colleagues state that her positive attitude, leadership and loyalty showcase her skillset in a way that encourages others to be their best selves. 

La Unidad Latina, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity Inc., presented a large wooden thank you card dedicated to the BES&R team for keeping the campus clean and having a profound impact on their student experience. Leaders from this fraternity worked with other student leaders to have students from around campus sign the card and share their sentiments of gratitude. 

The meeting concluded with a tribute to Brian Guns who served as BES&R director for 24 years.