Fashion is a passion for many people, but fashion is not the only fascination for new teacher, Tricia Guerrero. Guerrero currently teaches Fashion and Design Merchandising along with Culinary for her first year at Perry.

During high school, Guerrero attended EVIT, East Valley Institute of Technology, a career and technical school. She was awarded a $150,000 scholarship to a top culinary school in the world, the Culinary Institute of America. Graduating at the top of her class, Guerrero went to work in the hotel industry at prestigious locations such as the Scottsdale Plaza Resort.

Teaching fashion is a new and exciting challenge for Guerrero; the mix of Culinary I and Fashion and Design Merchandising 1 and 2 add variety and excitement to each day. “The experience of taking on fashion has been a new learning [experience] for me, adding to my base knowledge,” commented Guerrero.

But Guerrero sees little difference between her two subjects. “Fashion is very similar to culinary in that it is an art form. You’re still designing in culinary [just like] you’re designing in fashion. The end result is making people happy.”

The transition to Perry has been a smooth one for Guerrero. She was immediately impressed with the students. Guerrero praised, “In general, everyone is so polite, you [can] walk around and people say good morning and open doors for you. The students are polite and great to work with.”

There seems to be a mutual feeling of appreciation between Guerrero and her fashion students. “I can really tell that she has a passion for teaching and learning. She loves her students and, ultimately, that’s what makes her an excellent teacher,” said, junior Chloe Eichenauer

“Our fashion program is strong,” Principal Dan Serrano added, “You have to find somebody who knows what they’re talking about. You have to find quality people.”

Quality is the goal; Guerrero is hoping to grow with the fashion program and take it to new heights.