3 MIN READ

Values Ambassador Spotlight: Dusty Moore

Nominated by: Makala Navarro 

Value: Service 

Dusty’s dedication to keeping campus safe through bitter winter weather conditions despite personal challenges earned him the title of Values Ambassador. However, he made it clear that he’s only able to do his job as a part of the larger Facilities Services team.  

Kansas weather can give its citizens whiplash, but winters are especially inconsistent. When a major snowstorm hit Wichita at the beginning of the year, the facilities team worked around the clock to make sure students, staff, and families could travel safely on our campus. The storm also knocked out the heat in Dusty’s home.  

“He wanted to make sure our students and staff were okay," said Makala Navarro, Chief People Officer. "When I told him to prioritize his home, he said he had it temporarily under control and would address it once campus was taken care of. He wanted to be here alongside his team putting in the hours to keep everyone safe. I appreciated that I could count on him." 

Without a Facilities Services director at the time, it was up to Dusty to organize a plan with the rest of the team. In anticipation of winter weather, the team checks equipment functionality and battery health and ensures there’s enough melting product on hand. The facilities team starts before the weather does — even if that’s at 4 a.m. — to clear walkways. As snow or ice falls throughout the day, they work to maintain safety as best they can, especially around shift changes so staff can travel safely. Not to mention all the maintenance they continue to do across campus as work orders come in. 

Problem-solving and backup plans are essential in nearly every work environment, but especially for facilities teams who need to adjust on the fly. Staying vigilant, completing routine maintenance, and remaining resourceful helps ensure our team accomplishes things effectively and efficiently. After all, taking responsibility for a 37-acre campus is no small accomplishment.

“I’m very lucky in the fact I have a fantastic team around me,” Dusty said. 

As the Facilities Team Manager, Dusty coordinates the everyday upkeep of campus through preventative maintenance, repairs, janitorial needs, project management, and working with vendors. This ebb and flow of work means that no two days are the same.  

Working across campus, the facilities team is in constant collaboration and communication with different departments, vendors, and even parents and caregivers. When a student enrolls at the Heartspring Therapeutic Residential & Day School, Dusty and the rest of the team help families figure out moving logistics, furniture, and room specifications. He wants families to know that everything’s going to be taken care of before they arrive. Even though support staff at Heartspring don’t typically interact with students and clients, every employee is invested in helping the children on our campus succeed. “Anybody that is fortunate enough to be employed here will feel like they’re making an actual difference,” Dusty said.  “You don’t get that from a lot of jobs.” 

Our facilities team is constantly creating solutions for different environments and the needs of students or clients, and this outside-of-the-box innovation excites the team to be on the lookout for better fixes. For instance, they create tailor-made augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device cases because some students’ tablets need more protection than a standard case. Their extensive experience in maintenance and repairs helps them figure things out in a cost and time-sensitive manner. 

Their day-to-day operations have an immeasurable impact on the rest of our staff’s ability to do their jobs. With a team who figures things out together and helps others realize that every problem has a solution, their work behind the scenes keeps Heartspring functioning. “We’re lucky to have the culture and people that we do,” Dusty said. With back-ups to their back-up plans and “roll with it” attitudes, the Facilities Services team continuously delivers on their responsibility to take care of our campus.  

“You can’t work at this place and not care — it doesn’t work,” Dusty said. 

Thanks to Dusty and the rest of the Facilities Services team, we know the Heartspring campus is in good hands.