Q: The custodial staff all have specific jobs; what are your responsibilities?

A: My overall job is building maintenance, specifically plumbing, vents, electrical and mechanical fixes, heating, light fixtures…basically if anything is broken I’ll come by and fix it. I’ll work outside sometimes as well. Some people know me as the guy who hangs around with his laptop and pokes at the heaters every once in a while. The heating system is like a living beast – I’m on the job all day and night, sometimes I’m even on my laptop working on the system from home, because nothing is static and there’s always something to be done. It’s a big job!

Q: Algonquin has been making efforts towards being more “green” and energy conscious, how is that incorporated into your job?

A: For scheduling heating and air conditioning, I try to be as energy conscious as possible while taking people’s comfort into consideration. A main focus of my job is to ensure that the whole school is comfortable. I want to be as green as the next guy.

Q: I see you’re often on your computer, what is it that you do on there?

A: From this laptop I can run the entire heating system, the air conditioning, the lights…It’s like a virtual desk, it has everything my desk does except for my phone. There are over 300 heating units in this building, and I can control all of them from here with the click of a button. It’s also nice because I can listen to some iTunes while I walk around the school.

Q: That was my next question! Do you ever listen to music or audiobooks while you’re on your computer?

A: Yes I do, if I have the time. I really enjoy listening to the radio on iTunes, especially college and international radio. I’m a big Radiohead guy, and I love Pink Floyd and Prince. I saw Beck in concert this summer. I love to read, too. My favorite book is The Grapes of Wrath. If I could be an author, I would write like John Steinbeck. I’m currently reading Breakfast with Buddha.

Q: What’s one of the craziest things you’ve had to clean up?

A: I was working at St. Bernadette’s back in the day, it was the night before one of their theater productions and four different people threw up on the same night in different parts of the school. That was pretty insane.

Q: What’s something you’d like to say to the student body to help them make your job easier?

A: Well, that’s a hard question because the students and the staff all have treated me so kindly. Overall they’re very courteous, and I’m very impressed with them. If I could say anything to the students, as a father it would be to please stop dressing like it’s summer when it’s 10 degrees outside!