Elliott Cottington
Reporter
The morning traffic is a problem that students who arrive past 7:15 know all too well. The rapid influx of cars can become an obstacle to getting to school on time and tension can arise. However, with the help of James Ruggiero, better known as “traffic guy” among students and “J” among friends, the constant flow of traffic continues in an orderly fashion.
A typical day for Mr. Ruggiero, who has worked here for four years, depends on many factors. “A lot depends on the weather,” Mr. Ruggiero said. “The worst days are when it’s rainy and snowy and it’s hard to see me. Other than that, a typical day is trying to get the students and families in on schedule, so I try to even out the traffic and just keep it moving.”
Despite the fact that his name is often unknown to students, they appreciate him nonetheless. “I don’t think I would ever get to school on time without Mr. Ruggiero,” junior Catherine Friar said. “He makes sure that the traffic continues in a timely manner.”
Assistant Principal Veronica Leduc also expressed her appreciation for Mr. Ruggiero. “He gets that traffic moving pretty smoothly in the morning and keeps a bottleneck from forming,” Dr. Leduc said. “When he’s there, if the traffic is not coming the other way he moves the traffic right through, so I think it certainly does alleviate some of the backup we would have if he weren’t there.”
While teachers and parents alike often respect Mr. Ruggiero’s authority, challenges do arise on the job. “One challenge I face is people not stopping when I tell them to,” Mr. Ruggiero said. “Students and parents alike, it’s not just students. Parents are some of the problem people.”
Senior Glen Wolyner tries not to be one of those problem people. “I always try to wave to Mr. Ruggiero when I drive by him in the morning and I do my best to follow his directions because I know some people don’t,” Glen said.
Even though these challenges do occur, Mr. Ruggiero does feel a sense of motivation to continue working at the high school. “Besides doing this I do transportation in the afternoon for special education students, I act as an aid and sometimes I drive for them,” Mr. Ruggiero said. “But I enjoy seeing the children.”
Without Mr. Ruggiero, the traffic would be even more of a problem than it already is. However, thanks to him, things flow as smoothly as possible in the mornings. As Dr. Leduc said, “Anytime you can have somebody watch what the traffic is doing, you can move things along more effectively.”
