Brandon Wolf started sweeping hallways at a Canyons School District high school roughly 20 years ago. His crews were made up of students, and the daily contact kept him coming back.

Wolf said he stuck around because he enjoyed working with the kids and the people around him, and that getting to be part of students' lives made it a good place to work, according to a district announcement published Wednesday, Aug. 5.

Now Wolf will represent 3,000 education support professionals statewide as the new executive director of the Utah School Employees Association, a state affiliate of the National Education Association.

Wolf rose from that first sweeper job to Energy Team Lead, overseeing conservation efforts across more than 46 Canyons District schools and facilities. CSD Facilities Director Matthew Wolford said Wolf saved the district "tens of thousands of dollars" by monitoring water and electrical usage.

"We're sad he's leaving us but recognize the importance of the work he'll do with the USEA," Wolford said. "No one can go to Brandon and say, 'you don't know what it's like to be an ESP,' because he can say, 'yes, I do.'"

Along the way, Wolf volunteered and held elected leadership positions within USEA, building relationships with the paraeducators, custodians, food service workers, secretaries, bus drivers and maintenance staff the organization represents.

Canyons District serves about 34,000 students across Cottonwood Heights, Midvale, Sandy, Draper and Alta. The district itself employs nearly 3,000 education support professionals, the same category of workers Wolf will now advocate for at the state level.

Wolf said watching the district grow reinforced his belief in public education, and that his new role will focus on strengthening partnerships with policymakers, school employees and communities across Utah.

The district has not announced a start date for Wolf's transition to USEA or named a successor for the Energy Team Lead position.