Charles Turman

September 2011

Charles Turman

Charles Turman, a janitor trainee at Goodwill’s Tremont facility, recently earned his Custodial Technician Certification from the Cleaning Management Institute (CMI). Ask him what he learned in the class, and he proudly lists many lessons, including working a room clockwise, knowing the difference between chemical levels 1-3 and when to use them, emphasizing the importance of wearing gloves, and explaining how to strip and buff floors safely.

“I did complete. I did all the work. I answered 99% of the questions. I was like, ‘This is amazing stuff,’ ” he says.

For Charles, earning his certification was not only a great mark in his professional career – it was a tremendous personal accomplishment. For several years of his childhood, he was in foster care and bounced from school to school, missing out on some of his education. As a result, Charles has trouble reading, and students in the Custodial Technician Certification course must study five areas of custodial work and then pass a written end-of-course examination to receive their certification.

“I didn’t think I would be able to pass it at first,” Charles says. “It was just like coming from out of state and going somewhere. You don’t know anything or how it’s going to go. It was hard.”

But Charles never gave up. He worked with his instructor Phil Douglas, supervisor of the GW Commercial Services Janitorial Training Program and a certified CMI trainer, who helped him slow down in order to really understand the course material. He even learned to sound out words that were unfamiliar.

“He showed me that it’s not a real problem that I have,” Charles says. “Some people – they get it once, but for me, it took me two or three times.”

Charles took the written examination for his certification in two hours and passed – something he describes as “a real plus.”

“I’m glad I only had to take it once, instead of having to take the class twice or maybe three times,” he says.

Now, Charles has his sights set on new goals: taking computer classes, learning to write a letter, paying off his home, and looking for a full-time job. He came to Goodwill through the Senior Community Service Employment Program, which provides adults age 55 and older paid, part-time on-the-job training at a community service organization like Goodwill while they look for full-time employment. Charles says his new certification will give him an edge in the job market, and he says the class was advantageous for him.

“They show you how to do stuff,” he says. “They help you, take you by the hand.”

Video: Meet Charles