Joan Shaffer

Q: How long have you been working at Prospect?

A: “Nineteen and a half years.”

Q: Did you do anything else besides being a security guard?

A: “I was a special education bus driver for 30 years [before being a security guard].”

Q: How’d you like that?

A: “I loved it. I liked the fact that the kids were all [in] special education, and I got to meet the families and interact with their siblings. It was just a very pleasant experience.” 

Q: Why did you decide to work at Prospect High School?

A: “To be very honest with you, the bus company had very lousy benefits and I needed something with insurance and I wanted to try the older kids. The high school kids.”

Q: Do you think you made the right decision working here? 

A: “Oh yes. Well, first of all my sons graduated from here and my daughter in-law and my two granddaughters. So, Prospect was always sort of part of the family before I started working here.” 

Q: What would you say you enjoy most about your job as a security guard?

A: “I think being exposed to the different [types of] teenagers. Learning from the students. It was an easy way to keep in touch with what’s going on in their lives at that particular stage.”

Q: How would you describe your experience working at Prospect?

A: “It was a very good growing period for me personally. It opened up my eyes, [and gave me] a wider vision of the teenage world …”

Q: What are some of your favorite memories at Prospect?

A: “Working here while my [2] granddaughters were in school here.” 

Q: When was that?

A: “Katie graduated in ‘09 and Jessica in ‘11 and they were both involved in sports so it seemed like we lived in the field house for a long time.”

Q: What will you miss most about working at Prospect?

A: “I think all my colleagues and the kids in general … ” 

Q: Which colleagues do you particularly get along with?

A: “Well, the security team, and we come in contact with a lot of teachers. You develop relationships with some of them and that’s always really nice.”

Q: With about a month left of school, what do you plan to do during retirement? Is that a bittersweet feeling?

A: “Bittersweet, absolutely. Absolutely bittersweet. I look forward to the summer because I love to play golf. We’re a golfing family and so I’ll get to do that more often, and I’ll get to play my golf into the fall which I never get to do.” 

Q: Is there anything else you like to do in your free time that you’ll do in retirement?

A: “Well, I always like to read and I’ll do some traveling.” 

Q: Where do you plan to travel?

A: “Well, most of my family is out of town so it’s a matter of going back to Ohio and Arizona in the fall.”

Q: Are you looking forward to it [retirement] then?

A: “To that part, yeah. I’m going to miss coming in everyday so hopefully I can do some subbing.” 

Q: Do you have any advice for high school students who are just navigating their way through their four years here?

A: “Don’t be afraid to speak up for what you believe in and pay attention to the answers that you get.” 

Q: What do you mean by that?

A: “Well sometimes the kids want to know something and you tell them and then it’s like in one ear and out the other. They don’t absorb it and try to use what applies to them. Just listen, [and] decide what works for you. I think listening is a powerful tool.”

Q: Is there anything else you’d like to say about retirement or your experiences here?

A: “I love working at Prospect. I think of Prospect as being one big family. I just think Prospect is special.”