Ariel Watts has just joined Solon High School as the new student counselor. Below, get to know her and her life outside of school.

Q: What is your hometown?

A: Cleveland, Ohio.

Q: What is your alma mater?

A: Cleveland Central Catholic High School. For university, I graduated officially from Cleveland State. I also went to Cuyahoga Community College for the first three years.

Q: What made you want to work in education?

A: Education is heavy in my family. My mom actually worked at Cuyahoga Community College, and I always just really admired my school counselor when I was in high school. It just kind of fell into place.

Q: What was your previous job before coming to the SHS?

A: I got to work at Cleveland Central Catholic High School as the school counselor for five years before this. Before that, I was working as an ophthalmic assistant at Cleveland Clinic.

Q: And what is your favorite part of your job?

A: I love watching students grow, especially when I get to know them from ninth grade and watch them go to graduate. I absolutely love to see the growth in them and their confidence in seeing the adults that they become.

Q: What are some of your hobbies outside of school?

A: I love to paint, I love to write. I love watching thrillers and true crime documentaries. I think that my favorite thriller would have to be “The 5th Wave” because it’s in Ohio. I like the realness of something being so close to home but also fictional. It’s all about these natural disasters that happen in Ohio when the planet is under attack by aliens. I love alien thrillers. I love natural disasters. I love people being out in the wilderness in the woods and being stalked by something. I love stuff like that.

Q: Where do you see yourself in 15 years?

A: Hopefully still working here. Maybe a family by then. And if not, well-traveled and happy.

Q: What music do you listen to?

A: I have a range of music. I like to listen to Christian music. I like to listen to country music. I like to listen to some rap music, not a whole lot. I like R&B. I like soul music. I like “Hamilton,” whatever category that falls under.

Q: What was your favorite subject in high school?

A: English.

Q: What is the best place you’ve ever vacationed?

A: The cruise that I went on a couple summers ago that took me to Mexico. I was in Costa Maya, Honduras and Cozumel. That was fun. I loved it. Being on the water, in the water and all.

Q: What is something you think is special about Solon High School?

A: So far, I think the kids are very special. I’m not used to students who are so, so high achieving. I love seeing the contrast. I just think that’s so special, just knowing everybody that comes in is going to be great when they leave because I love growth. I love seeing the growth in my students. I just think that’s amazing.

Q: And if you didn’t work in education, what field would you work in?

A: Definitely in the medical field. I was working in the Cleveland Clinic before. I did that just to pay for college. But honestly, if I had just stopped there and that was like my end game, I would have been so happy. I think I just like serving people and helping people. When you see people who are struggling and feeling sick and just feeling gross, I love the end result of them getting better.

Q: What’s your favorite food?

A: I love salmon. I’ve kind of been fixating on salmon for the last year. I know how to cook it one way, I just pan fry it. But I can eat it three times a week.

Q: Do you have any advice for people wanting to go into education?

A: I would say to do it, but make sure you love it. Make sure your heart is in it and make sure that you are passionate about it. You never know what direction or what district life will take you. The people will look different. The demographics will look different. The people you work with will look different. Circumstances will look different. But, as long as your heart is in the work, you’ll be great.

Q: Do you have a favorite memory from high school?

A: When I was in high school, we used to have field day around homecoming time. They would have bouncy houses, they would have food trucks and they just kind of let us all run free. It was a good time.