Mrs. Alison Cucchetti, the beloved librarian of Oak Hills High School who manages to put a smile on every student’s face when they speak to her, is an ex-history teacher and history major, but how did she get to be the kind librarian everyone knows? When asked whether or not she was raised in this area, Cuccchetti answers, “Mostly I grew up in Pennsylvania,” Cuccchetti said, “If you picture Pennsylvania, there’s a chimney that sticks up the top into Lake Erie, that’s where I grew up…” Growing up next to Lake Erie, Cucchetti went on to major in History, having dreams of becoming a congresswoman as she minored in Political Science. When questioned on how she went from dreaming of working in politics to becoming a teacher, Cucchetti said, “I majored in History, and all of my roommates, friends, etc., were all elementary education majors, and they said, ‘You should take an Education class’. And I said okay, so I took an education class and I loved it.” Cucchetti learned her ability to teach during her class in education and continued on from there.
She started her first five years of teaching at North College Hill, a smaller school in its own independent district. As a small school, Cucchetti often had to take on other jobs besides teaching History, such as being the dance coach as well as the soccer coach. To that Cucchetti said, “I played soccer in high school for three years. That evidently made me qualified to coach soccer.” After five years of teaching in a small high school Cucchetti left in search of a larger school to teach at, which is how Oak Hills garnered her attention. Cucchetti loved her job as a history teacher but after having two daughters, she started to dislike the pace. Going back and forth between school saying, “It was too much altogether.” So Cucchetti left teaching history; instead of getting a degree in education or an administrator’s license, Cucchetti chose to get an advanced degree in libraries. When I asked Cucchetti what her job as the librarian entailed, she said, “I feel my job entails a lot of asking questions and listening and collecting. Those are the things I do the most. Or, we curate a collection, which is a lot different than what inherited it, because it lives to serve the people who are in this building…” Going on to explain how most of the books within the library she acquired for different classes, such as mythology and AP Literature.
Cucchetti believes she gives back to the community by bringing positive energy wherever she goes, a sentiment shared by her colleague, Mrs. O’Hara. When asked what it was like working with Cucchetti, O’Hara said, “She is such a delight to all the kids, she makes everything seem like it’s so much fun…” O’Hara continues to express how much enthusiasm Cucchetti brings to Oak Hills High School every day she comes. O’hara and Cucchetti have worked together for many years, first when Cucchetti taught history and now as librarians together. Though O’Hara states their jobs aren’t entirely similar, saying, “I am just part of the AIDES in the building that just helps her, I do a lot more Chromebook work than the library side.” Despite their different jobs in the Media Center, Cucchetti and O’Hara can often be seen chatting and laughing together while working. Cucchetti, in her time at Oak Hills High School has not only moved students, but also her colleagues; a ball of kindness to all members of Oak Hills. When proposed with a question that seems to excite Cucchetti, a question on books she would recommend to students, “A solid pick, Kim Ligget’s The Unfortunates. It’s short, it moves really fast, and it has a fantastic twist at the end.” Cucchetti said. To students who may need help, whether it be Chromebook issues or just wish to get into reading, Cucchetti is always waiting in the Media Center, ready to show any student a book that will catch their attention immediately.
