While the majority of the Swarthmore student body is sound asleep at 6:00 a.m., Nona Yancey, affectionately known as Ms. Nona, has already begun her day. In fact, by this time, Ms. Nona has already finished sanitizing the Ware Pool and is busy working in the PPR Apartments.
“It’s hard, but I get it done. It’s like my workout for the day, so I don’t have to go to the Matchbox later,” Ms. Nona said with a chuckle.
Ms. Nona has been an environmental services (EVS) technician at Swarthmore for over ten years. As an EVS technician, Ms. Nona is responsible for maintaining the cleanliness and sanitation of the buildings, classrooms, and residence halls on campus. For the PPR apartments, which houses over 100 students, Ms. Nona is its sole caretaker.
“I’m proud that I have been able to maintain this big building as one person and keep it nice for the kids,” she said.
Ms. Nona credits her ability to manage her workload through having a reliable and efficient system. Each day, she cleans one of the four floors in the PPR dorm, starting with the bathrooms of every suite before tending to the rest of the floor. She ends the day in the lobby, vacuuming and sanitizing the large common area.
“If you have a system, you can work through it. You know you can only do what you can each day. And if you don’t finish, then you do it the next day,” Ms. Nona said. “Also, if you communicate with the children, they’ll work with you.”
Students who live in the PPR apartments often share a close bond with Ms. Nona, who is known for her caring and approachable personality. As residents leave for class or practice in the morning, Ms. Nona will greet them and wish them well each day. Even during our interview, Ms. Nona took a moment to say hello to someone passing by.
“I love the kids. I like Swarthmore. I like the atmosphere, but I just love the kids. It’s like they are my kids,” Ms. Nona said. “They come in not knowing anything, and then when they leave, they’ve grown up.”
When reflecting on her most memorable moment at Swarthmore, Ms. Nona chose a memory including NPPR residents. An avid basketball fan, Ms. Nona was there when the men’s basketball team beat Muhlenberg College in 2020 to advance to the championship round of the Centennial Conference tournament. Many members of the team were living in PPR at the time. Swarthmore’s win also set a new Centennial Conference record of 26 consecutive wins.
“I knew a lot of the kids on the team and they still come back to the games,” Ms. Nona said. “I’m a basketball fanatic. I love basketball. And I see them, and they remember Ms. Nona.”
The team’s championship run was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which also significantly reduced the number of people on campus. When full access to residential spaces opened to students in the Fall of 2021, however, Swarthmore had changed. In the NPPR dorm alone, Ms. Nona has noticed a decrease in activity. But the pandemic also changed the campus culture itself.
“I don’t think we gather as much as we used to. There used to be more social events for the employees, but I don’t think there are as many anymore,” Ms. Nona said. “We used to go to everything y’all used to go to, but it’s not like that anymore. A lot of times y’all have stuff that we don’t know anything about. I just think there is a gap in communication.”
The EVS team as a whole resonates with this post-pandemic communication gap. It has become increasingly difficult to stay connected with other technicians, especially those working in different areas across campus. Ms. Nona makes a conscious effort to take time out of her day to check in on her fellow team members, who can easily go weeks without seeing each other.
“I try to help them in any way I can, and I let them know that I’m here if they need me,” Ms. Nona said. “And for the new people that come in, I let them know that if they need help, I’m here.”
Despite the challenges the campus has faced, Ms. Nona still values the community Swarthmore provides to its members.
“Being in this environment, it teaches you how to love unconditionally because the kids don’t want anything but love,” Ms. Nona said. “And they might be away from their family, but you all become one big family. That’s what makes me love coming to work — the kids — because it’s like they are my new family. It’s the kids that make it so family oriented.”
Ms. Nona is set to retire in three years, and she is looking forward to visiting her grandchildren in Connecticut more often. As she discussed life after Swarthmore, Ms. Nona offered graduating seniors some advice.
“Embrace the uncertainty. Embrace it because you’re going to get through it — you got through these four years on your own. Not saying that you didn’t have help along the way, but you did it by yourself,” Ms. Nona said. “You’re just going to be in the real world. It’s like you are coming out of this bubble because I think being in college is like being in one big bubble. But you get what you give, if you give goodness, you’ll get goodness back.”
