Tessa Marshall

Growing up in an athletically driven family, I became very sports oriented and started playing soccer at the age of 3. My childhood centered around long drives to away games and sleepless nights before tryouts.

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Having soccer as a part of my every day life has helped me naturally acquire essential team-working skills and has taught me a lot about what it means to be a leader, that one must not command authority, but rather earn it through showing vulnerability, offering guidance, and fostering the unique strengths of every individual.

 

  At Redwood, I was drawn to the camaraderie shown within the athletic teams and joined soccer my freshman year. As a result, I became more involved and grew to love showing my school spirit and participating in the activities offered at my high school, which drove me to join other collaborative teams at Redwood, like the TUPE team.

 

I have always had a passion for prevention through education when it came to tobacco and marijuana usage, so when I heard about TUPE and what they do for their community, I had to join. Being on this team my junior year and teaching kids at various middle schools in Marin has been so rewarding because a single fifteen minute presentation could be the difference between an addict and a healthy individual with a long life ahead of them. 

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Being involved in TUPE, I grew a passion for educating others and helping out my community, so I decided to become a peer tutor in the special needs classroom at Redwood. The kids and the connections I built with them have taught me about the importance of patience and perseverance along with the power of support. 

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Overall, all my experiences, whether at Redwood or outside of Redwood, have helped grow my character, change my perspective, and given me skills that are applicable to my everyday life and I can confidently carry into my work as a student journalist.