Mr. Pete Saracino is a prime, real-life example of the phrase "The truly educated never graduate." When he isn’t teaching here at Whitman, he has been attending part-time classes at the University of Rochester for three years, four and a half counting summer workshops.

This semester, he is planning on taking his education to the next level to get his doctorate degree in education. Saracino wants to "teach teachers how to teach."

Every teacher is granted a sabbatical, an educational leave of absence, to get their doctorates degree. If one were so inclined, they can leave for the entire semester with full pay, as long as they come back and teach for a full year afterwards, which Saracino has gladly agreed to do.

After teaching elementary, middle school, high school, and college students, Mr. Saracino really enjoys teaching at a college level more than the rest. In college, he says, the responsibility is fully on the student to learn. In high school, if a student fails, the teacher becomes "under fire" as to why they aren’t doing their job right. He likes being able to fine tune exactly what he can teach. For example, in High School you have to teach a course on astronomy and everything about it, where in college you can teach a class solely on planets, and that is it. At a college campus, when they aren’t teaching, teachers are allowed and encouraged to pursue their own research using the resources provided at the campus, while being paid.

Most of all, he likes teaching college students because they are more ready to learn than their high school counterparts. Teenagers are forced to go to school, and everyone can tell when they don’t want to be there. In college, Saracino says, "If you don’t like the rules, you can leave."

Mr. Saracino believes he’s crazy for "loving to learn new things," but even if he is a little crazy, he will be missed and the student body will surely be waiting for his return next Fall.

Farewell Mr. Saracino, and good luck!