Tessa Bangs Earns Senior Spotlight

Tessa Bangs discusses the “Career Internship Program” or “Senior Option" that allows seniors to experience from various local businesses.

Tessa Bangs gets involved with fourth graders as a teacher assistant.

Tessa Bangs
Maddy Pollen and Tessa Bangs on the job. Photo by Eve Mahaney.

Montclair High School senior Tessa Bangs will be spending her senior option at Bradford Elementary School. There, Bangs will be working as a teaching assistant, getting a real classroom experience.

Tessa Bangs will be accompanied by fellow senior Maddy Pollen who is working as a teaching assistant as well.

“Basically I work with three rotating fourth grade classes, mainly in homeroom and math classes, and then I lead the book clubs for one of the books for English as well,” Tessa Bangs explained.

Tessa Bangs works at Bradford for several hours every day. She found the opportunity to become involved in this internship through her mother, Cary Bangs, who has been teaching at Bradford for nine years.

Although Tessa Bang’s senior option includes facilitating classroom activities, her interests span much farther than working with children. She explained that social work and communications are two careers that she may be interested in pursuing later on.

During her time at MHS, Tessa Bangs was very active in different clubs and organizations.  Bangs participated in many different service clubs, the psychology club and the school paper, where she served as Editor in Chief. Bang’s involvement in these activities has taught her the necessary leadership skills and work ethic needed to carry out a senior option with younger children.

In addition to the leadership experience she gained while in school, Tessa Bangs also had prior experience working with children, “I was once a camp counselor for six year olds, so that’s probably the best training I could ever get.”

When describing the specific challenges that come along with her internship, Tessa Bangs added that, “It’s really just the tiredness that comes with trying to put nine year olds into order, so I just collapse into bed at the end of the day.”

Despite the effort that Tessa Bangs has to put in during the day, she still thinks of her senior option as an extremely rewarding and fun experience. After being a student in the Montclair Public School District for so long, she feels as though teaching younger students helps her give back to the district that taught her.

“It’s a really great way to give back to the community and experience the memories of my thirteen years in this district again just as I’m about to leave,” shared Tessa Bangs.

Tessa Bangs will be attending the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, I.N. come fall, where she will major in American Studies with a minor in journalism and public service.

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