For part of the past two school years, Dr. Kerri Titone has been working as the vice principal of Pelham Memorial High School. Recently, I’ve had the opportunity to converse with her discussing the journey she took to get to where she is now, and advice she would like to give to her students. 

My first question to Dr. Titone asked who were some of the most influential people in her life. Without hesitation, she brought attention to her parents. 

“They didn’t put a lot of pressure on me, wanted the best for me, and inspired me to work hard,” she exclaimed. 

Afterwards, I asked her what extracurricular activities she took in her high school years. She told me that she had an abundance of extracurricular activities she partook in. This consisted of dance class, ice skating, student government, Girls Leaders Corps, and more. She described that especially in her senior year, it would tend to get difficult for her to deal with all of the extracurriculars on top of her advanced classes.

After talking about her early life as a highschool student, we talked about her journey in joining the education department. When I asked if she always wanted to be an educator, she explained that she tried a few other fields at first, but soon realized she had a passion for teaching. 

“I took an Italian class in college and I was like, I love this,” stated Dr. Titone. “This is amazing.”

When I asked how she thought the college experience was for her overall, she regarded it as life changing. 

“I became an Italian teacher. I met the best of my friends. It started my love for travel. It totally changed my life.”

Eventually, I asked her how and why she came to Pelham. Dr. Titone went on to describe that she discovered Pelham via an online posting, and realized the distance between her house was suitable. However, the main reason was that she wanted to continue her love for educating others

“What made me attracted to this position, particularly, was the skill set. I like to work with supervising all subject areas. I also like to be involved with students.” 

In my final two questions I asked what advice Dr. Titone has for future students seeking a career path in an educational field like herself. She insisted on not waiting and to try different opportunities such as an internship, or shadowing a teacher. Dr. Titone explained that the perspectives of students and teachers are very different, so getting experience from both angles is extremely important. 

Lastly, I asked her if she had any advice for our seniors entering college. She exclaimed that the seniors should take advantage of school opportunities and be active in our school community since most students will never see each other again after graduation. 

“That’s the last opportunity to savor it,” she stated. 

Dr. Titone also insisted on seniors to be honest with themselves when choosing colleges. 

“I think it’s really important to be true to yourself and what you value, what you like and what you don’t,” exclaimed Dr. Titone.