The CHIEF September 2024

New Teacher Interview with Mr. Valois By Hannah Ricketts

As we all settle into the new school year, it’s important that we get to know new faces in the crowd, which includes the new teachers! This month, I received the opportunity to interview our new Director of Bands at PTHS, Mr. Valois! Mr. Valois lived in a small suburb of Chicago called Villa Park and attended Willowbrook High School. In high school, he was very involved in both academics and extracurricular activities. He was, of course, involved in the music program, which included marching band, a competitive level jazz band, pit orchestra, choir, and Tri-M music honor society. A few of his many other extracurricular activities include speech team, student council, and various other honor societies. He realized his sophomore year of high school that he wanted to be a band director. Later he attended the University of Illinois and majored in music education. He was inspired by his high school band director to become a music teacher. He described the process of getting into U of I as "rigorous,” and he felt underprepared as a freshman. From that moment on, he studied and practiced to ensure he would never feel that way again. From private lessons that honed every aspect of his musicianship to time spent in classrooms working with young musicians, he was working to become the best band director possible. During his junior year of college, he became a part of Kappa Kappa Psi, a national service band fraternity, where they hosted events and did various service projects for bands across Illinois. His senior year, he student taught at Vernon Hills High School and Jackson Middle School, where he received great mentorship from the band directors there. Throughout his college career, he was a part of the famous Marching Illini. He enjoyed being a part of the marching band, and one of his favorite aspects was being able to meet people from different backgrounds. One fond memory from his time in the band was when they got to travel to Ireland for St. Patrick’s Day to march in the parade and perform. When I asked him if he had any advice for students, he said this: “Take every opportunity that is presented to you. Time is always working against you, so don’t use it as an excuse not to do things.” With that parting message, let’s all give Mr. Valois a warm welcome to PTHS!