Teacher Spotlight: Mr. Kutina

With many of our beloved librarians and library aides departing from Kenmore West in recent times, the school library has had a new face. This month, I had the honor of interviewing our new librarian, Mr. Kutina.

Mr. Kutina’s love for the library started long before his new position here at our high school. Growing up, Mr. Kutina loved reading and writing, making the library the perfect place. For him, the library became a safe space throughout his academic years, feeling exceptionally comfortable and accepted in the environment.

Kutina refers back to his middle school years specifically as a time of inspiration for himself. Growing up with a younger brother, he often had to wait after school, as the elementary students were released after the middle school. In order to pass the time, he would stay in the library doing homework and even helping around the library.

After leaving high school, Kutina would further pursue his love of writing, obtaining a Bachelor's degree in creative writing before completing his Master's degree in school librarianship at UB. In between getting his two degrees, he worked as a freelance writer, copywriting for online stores and developing advertisements. Alongside studying to get his Master’s, he worked as a teacher aide with special education students. 

Mr. Kutina values becoming a librarian as one of the biggest accomplishments of his life. He says he’s proud of the fact that he pursued what he truly wanted to do. Now that he’s here, Mr. Kutina has high praise for the school, saying that “it’s a privilege to be in charge” of our library. Kutina says he enjoys working in the library because he feels like he can be relaxed and flexible as long as kids stay on good behavior.

Mr. Kutina says that his passion for reading and writing transcends just his time in the library. Mr. Kutina shared his love for Stephen King’s work specifically. When asked about his time outside of work, Mr. Kutina responded saying that he loves to be outside and spend time in nature, particularly hiking and fishing. Mr. Kutina also spends his free time playing games like D&D.

Mr. Kutina leaves readers with a final piece of advice. More than anything, go for what you enjoy. Kutina finds that lots of students find reading hard and get discouraged. He recommends not giving up but instead trying something that might interest you more. Kutina says that when reading about topics people find interesting, it makes the task as a whole feel easier.