GPI - Tracy Thibaudeau, Ram Tram Driver
By Cooper Davis
Staff Writer
By Gracie Wyatt
Staff Writer
What's your favorite part about your role as a shuttle bus driver?
My favorite part would probably have to be the people: the students, staff, and faculty. I get to know people. Not everyone, but the majority of them are nice. I also get to find out lots of information from everyone. They get on, and we talk. It’s amazing. What makes it better is that almost everybody is respectful and nice. Some are not, but most of them are. Another part that is great is getting to know the students who work at the Student Transportation Center desk. I can’t say for the ones who work the night shift, but the students who work the day are great. They are beyond respectful to us and take their work seriously, which makes our day better.
What is a typical day in your life?
I have been here for just about 10 years now. Typically, during the day, I drive tram 5. I do the parking lot route. So I go to Salem End Lot, Maple Lot, Union Lot, and then back to campus all day long. It can get repetitive, but the people help. However, during the summer, I continue to work here. I move to a facilities role.
What are some hobbies or interests you have outside of your job?
I love to listen to true crime. I also do some crafts for Christmas. I make sock gnomes and a bunch of resin stuff. I like to give them as gifts, and my family loves them. I also love decorating my bus. I usually buy the decorations, and Cheryl [another STC driver] decorates them. We started decorating at Halloween last year, and we also decorated for Christmas. It’s hard when professors have to move classes throughout the day, so I am grateful that I am able to have my bus decorated. I do it to bring my passengers a little joy, especially during the stressful finals season.
What advice do you have for Framingham State Students?
Work hard. You pay for an education. Go to your classes. Work hard so that when you get out of school, you learn something and you get a good job. Life is so boring if you don't do something. You’ve got to do something to make it fun, you know? If you're serious all the time, then it just drags. That's why I dress up for Halloween and make up stories. Every time we cross the railroad tracks by the athletic parking lot, we have to stop, open the door, and look and listen for a train. Well, I got bored doing that, so I started picking up a ghost. His name is Jeffrey, and he got run over by a train. The ghost law says you have to live where you die. So, he gets on. He just got on, and he rides around the athletic lot, and then he gets off. Well, he has a girlfriend, Anastasia, who lives in the tunnels under Framingham State, which really do exist. I've been in the tunnels. Well, Framingham was the first normal school in America, so the girls used to go through the tunnels to get from building to building. They're really creepy! … So make life fun!
