When Scott Rea ’87 joined Riordan’s staff as a facilities and plant director, he was asked to do an unusual task right off the bat. He had to put together an underwater scene backdrop for a fundraiser, which ended up being an Atlantis-like piece of art. It might have been a signal for strange things, but ended up becoming a successful start.

Rea’s job around campus is controlling the heating and lighting on campus as well as making sure everything is sound in the building. One of the big aspects of his job is taking requests from teachers who need something fixed.

Rea stated, “The most difficult part of my job is managing my time and putting the necessary pieces into priority. I have to decide what’s the priority when dealing with requests.

Rea was interested in working with the stage crew during school plays as a student. One thing turned into another and he fell in love with “working with different size tools, using my hands to build, problem solve, creative thinking and managing time.”

At the end of December, Rea is taking a job with the County Office of a Education at San Mateo, where he will serve as the director of maintenance and transportation. He calls it the “next level.”

His successor, he suggests, should have fun, but also be even tempered. Short fuses are the trait one simply cannot have while performing this job, according to Rea.

“I enjoy working around the kids and having fun,” he said. “I will miss the rallies, fun events, band performances and basketball games.”