Dr. Eunice Madon ends her tenure as principal this June, but her relationship to Steinmetz extends far beyond her eight years as principal. She attended Steinmetz as a student, and worked as a teacher, counselor, and assistant principal before becoming principal.

Dr. Eunice Madon is interviewed by Star co-editors-in-chief Crystal Phillips and Tetyana Prannychuk. Dr. Madon has been a strong supporter of the Steinmetz Star. Sharing the good news of Steinmetz’s students and staff with the outside community is always one of her goals as principal.

Dr. Madon grew up in the Steinmetz attendance area, attending Lovett Elementary school before starting Steinmetz as a freshman. Dr. Madon was a student athlete, participating in the Sychronetts, a synchronized swim team, and volleyball. She also served as a student journalist, working on the staff of both publications, the Star and the yearbook. Her work helped Dr. Madon become an inductee into the Quill & Scroll Society.

I recently sat down with Dr. Madon to discuss her years at Steinmetz.

Star: Were you an A student in high school?

Dr. Madon: I wasn’t an A student, I was an average student. Just because you are not an A student doesn’t mean that you don’t have a great future to come. I wasn’t number one in my class but I never failed a class. I enjoyed high school. I had very strict parents. I also did not date in high school. That wasn’t allowed. After college graduation I got married and had a family. I now have two daughters and two granddaughters. Both of my daughters have advanced degrees — one has a masters of public administration and the other has a law degree.

Star: What college did you attend?

Dr. Madon: I attended college at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana. I received my masters in counseling at Northeastern and my PhD at Loyola.

Star: When were you inspired to pursue a career in education? Who and what inspired you?

Dr. Madon: I decided that I wanted to be a teacher my senior of high school here at Steinmetz. My English teacher had a booklet calle “Prophesies.” This booklet was very special to me. Also, I loved to read because back in my day we didn’t have very much TV and there were no video games or iPods.

Star: What led up to your position as principal?

Dr. Madon: I started off as an English teacher, and then I was selected to be a counselor. Then I moved to Program Director of the Wellness and Sports Science Academy. Eventually I became the college counselor. After that, I was promoted to assistant principal and then finally principal.

Star: How did your promotion from teacher to principal affect your relationship with your family?

Dr. Madon:  I have always had great support from my family. When I was a teacher, I had normal hours and my children were younger. When I became principal, my hours increased but my children were grown at that point. So the new hours really didn’t affect my children.

Star: It is known that being the principal of a high school requires a lot of dedication, what does a typical day consist of?

Dr. Madon: There are never any typical days in the life of a principal. My day is always very hard to predict. You can plan to do something in the morning and then you look up at the clock and figure out you never got to what you wanted to. Problems always arise that are always unexpected. So my day is never normal.

Star: What has been your biggest challenge as principal?

Dr. Madon: My biggest challenge as principal I can say is showing the wonderful things that are happening at Steinmetz. We have great teachers and great students and we need to get the news about the good things out there. I honestly want the best.

Star: Having the position of principal of a high school is a huge accomplishment, was this one of your goals?

Dr. Madon: No, it was not. All I wanted to do was teach English. When I became assistant principal, then it became a goal. I had been content to be an English teacher. I loved the students, the books, and teaching.

Star: What is the craziest thing that you have ever done while here at Steinmetz, either when you were a student or employee?

Dr. Madon: The craziest thing was play in the Basketbrawl with you, Amber. I felt kind of silly because I could not really make a basket to save my soul. But I have no regrets. I enjoyed playing, the little that I did. It was fun but I was really concerned before I played. I can say that I became more of a risk-taker after playing.

Star: What do you plan to do with your extra time?

Dr. Madon: I plan on volunteering at a local hospital and working with children. I also am happy because I get to spend more time with my grandchildren. I still want to visit China within the next two years. I have traveled a lot and been on every continent except South America and Antarctica.

Star: Upholding the position of principal requires you to be strict and that strictness can sometimes be misinterpreted as a mean demeanor. Is there anything that you want to say about this?

Dr. Madon:  I am what I am. People who know me understand me and my actions. I keep to the rules and sometimes people just don’t understand that.

Star: Is there any advice you can give a young adult who wants to accomplish many goals?

Dr. Madon: Work towards your goals. Get the best education you can. It can never be taken away from you. The more education you have, the broader your scope of opportunities. You never know where a college degree will take you.

Education to me is the key. I will tell that to any student. Can you survive? Yes. Will you succeed? Now that’s the real question. Don’t stop because you got the job or career you want. Don’t be content. Continue to learn throughout life.