Employee of the Month (November 2005)

Sam’s Club Representative and Jackson Middle School Alumnus Steve Drewry congratulates Paul Simpson, a custodian at the school. Simpson was selected as the district’s Employee of the Month for November 2005.

He retired on a Friday in 1985, but was back at work the following Monday, because he couldn’t bear to leave the school, its staff and its students. That was two decades ago.

Amid the cheers of students and staff, 82-year-old Paul Simpson, a custodian at Jackson Middle School became Guilford County Schools’ Employee of the Month for November 2005. Simpson has worked for Jackson Middle School since the school opened its doors in 1960. For the past 50 years, Simpson has been a bastion of knowledge about the school, its principals, staff and students. He even knows where the school’s time capsules are buried.

“There is no one in the GCS system who deserves this honor more than Paul Simpson,” wrote Nancy Bell in a recent nomination. Bell, who is a sixth-grade teacher, and three other GCS employees nominated Simpson for the Employee of the Month recognition.

During a ceremony at the school this morning, Simpson received a $50 gift card and a gift bag from Sam’s Club, who has partnered with GCS to support the employee recognition program. Oddly enough, Sam’s Club Representative Steve Drewry, who presented Simpson with the gift card, is himself a graduate of Jackson Middle School. “I’m proud personally, as well as professionally to be able to recognize Mr. Simpson, who has given so much of himself to the school throughout the years,” he said.

In addition to the Sam’s Club gift card, Simpson’s photo will hang during the month of November at the district’s three central offices, at Jackson Middle School and at the Wendover Avenue Sam’s Club. Simpson will also be recognized by the Board of Education at its November 8 meeting.

Guilford County Schools is the third largest school district in North Carolina serving more than 70,000 students at 116 schools. With approximately 10,000 employees, the district’s mission is to graduate responsible citizens who are college/work ready.

Guilford County Schools is a national leader in providing specialized schools and instructional programs designed to meet the educational needs of a culturally diverse citizenship.  For more information, visit the district’s Web site at www.gcsnc.com.