PNN Spotlight: Marching Band Senior Allie Tessier aims higher than the Eiffel Tower
With home football games every other week and fall just around the corner, the Penn Marching Kingsmen have been keeping themselves busy since late this summer. Senior Allie Tessier in specific has been keeping up with the weight of academics, marching band, and her other extracurriculars quite well.
Tessier began her journey with music in the fourth grade, originally choosing the trombone at a school-sponsored instrument selection night before switching to the flute. Now, she spends grueling hours in the summer playing her flute in the Penn marching band and playing it for her church at mass.
After transferring to the PHM district from St. Pius X Catholic School her freshman year, Tessier quickly found her niche within the Kingsmen community. She joined Penn’s branch of Girl Up, a women-empowerment club, her freshman year and found her place as an executive member soon thereafter.
“For a large part of my life I remember being aware of the inequality that women have been facing. I remember feeling that the girls in my classes were sometimes treated differently from my male counterparts,” Tessier said.
Through Girl Up, Tessier has organized drives with the YWCA and education for all in her community.
“I want to empower women to do whatever they put their minds to, especially in historically male dominated fields. Running Girl Up club has definitely been a huge part of my female empowerment journey as well: I get to help girls in our school community feel empowered,” she said.
Between her long hours of rehearsal and club duties, Tessier maintains an excellent academic standing. She uses a simple calendar system to track all of her responsibilities, and always puts her coursework first.
“The most draining parts are the times when I have to prepare for a test and I end up doing practice problems for hours on end,” she said. “When I get a good grade, though, I feel that it was worth it!”
Having already taken several cadet teaching classes at Penn, Tessier hopes to major in education and some kind of science in college — most likely astronomy or chemistry — with a minor in Spanish. In the far future, she hopes to live a life full of love to and from her community, with a specific goal of opening up her own planetarium one day.
“I want to spread my love of astronomy and the stars to all, and I want to help break down the barrier to the STEM field that many women face,” she said.
As if all of her passions weren’t enough already, Tessier is also a dedicated member of the National Honor Society, holding an executive role as the Recycling Chair.