Our Team – Administration
Our Foundation and Support!
Our Foundation and Support!
Kathleen has her BA in Special Education and K-8 Education and started her career as a special needs teacher in Florida, concentrating on emotional and learning differences. She has her MA in Administration and Supervision, and principal’s certification in NY. Kathleen is a recent graduate fellow of The Klingenstein Heads of School at Columbia University.
Kathleen moved to Europe and taught in a small international school in Genoa, Italy- 3⁄4 grade, and at The University of Genoa. She moved to Germany and sold educational texts for Macmillan McGraw Hill worldwide for 7 years- traveling the world and visiting international schools, colleges, and Department of Defense schools.
Next, she moved back to the USA and worked at United Nations International School that has the IB and languages, some public schools in NJ, and an early childhood center, before moving into admissions at Far brook School in Short Hills.
She moved to CA to Silicon Valley and continued as Admissions Director, before moving to DC as the Enrollment Director at Washington International School that had both the IB and immersion in Spanish, French and Dutch. She has led in two of the biggest international schools in the USA and been in senior leadership for over 20 years.
Seven years ago, Kathleen joined The Elisabeth Morrow School in Englewood, once of the most diverse schools in the country. She moved to Hoboken, where both of her parents were born and grew up, so has a heartfelt connection to this city.
Kathleen’s daughter Kate has her BA in Econ and Mandarin and MPA from NYU and is a Chief of Staff in the Comptrollers office.
Kathleen is delighted to find a bilingual IB school right here in Hoboken and is honored to be joining the Tessa family. Her strengths include strategic planning, helping parents with concerns about learning styles, building enrollment and community partnerships, structures and programs, diversity and inclusion, and communication. She often presents national and international workshops on creative outreach.
Lea was born and raised in France, in a little town of Loire Valley, located between farms and vineyards. She has a Masters degree in humanitarian and social work with a focus in communication from Ircom, in Angers.
Lea has always wanted to serve different communities since a very young age. She was involved many years with the Girl Scouts. She spent months volunteering at an orphanage in India, and she is the co-founder of non-profit organization in France which helps people by organizing social and cultural events. Since she arrived in the States a few years ago, she has volunteered in several non-profit organizations, including America Scores, which provides afterschool programs in soccer, poetry and service learning. From these experiences and thanks to her mother who has been a dedicated teacher for 35 years, she learnt that education is the key to development in all communities.
She has been Head of Auxiliary Programs at Tessa for 3 years, running a wonderful Summer Camp every summer.
She believes that school instills confidence, knowledge and an open mind to our future generation to be tomorrow’s leaders. She is proud to be part of Tessa, which represents an education of excellence through bilingualism!
Summer was born and raised in New Jersey. She has a Bachelor of Arts, degree in Public Relations and Business from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY on the Hudson River. She was a four year Division 1 Women’s Rowing team member.
Summer has placed roots here in Hoboken with her husband and two children. She has been a part of the Hoboken community for 15 years. Summer has spent the last seven years as the General Manager for a local business, overseeing events and outreach. She is excited to use her local connections and passion for building relationships to add to the continued success of Tessa.
In her free time Summer loves running along the Riverfront, spending time with her family and playing catch with her dog!
Born and raised in Belgium, Amélie graduated in Education, with the Haute Ecole Roi Baudouin, in June 2007.
She holds a Bachelor degree in Education and a License in Education.She is currently finishing her Master in Training Practices & Engineering Trainer training.
Throughout her career, she has been able to broaden her skills in four different countries: Belgium, Congo DRC, Cambodia and now the USA.
Her travels and experiences, across multiple continents with diverse environments, have enriched her with practical and beneficial skills such as the ability to adapt to cultural diversity, the means to grow rapidly in an unknown environment, and the capacity to achieve efficiency despite, sometimes, unusual working conditions.
Amélie joined Tessa in 2020 as a lead Teacher and French Coordinator and the leadership team, in 2021. She is happy to continue the beautiful “Accreditations/IB/Curriculums/Learning” adventure in a school that advocates for education without borders to stimulate international sensitivity and consideration.
Dragana comes from Serbia and has an extensive international experience. Having resided in Serbia, China, and Norway before relocating to the United States in late 2019, she has embraced the diverse perspectives and customs of each country. Therefore, she speaks 4 languages: Mandarin, Norwegian, English, and Serbian. This linguistic prowess enables her to effectively communicate with people from various backgrounds and forge connections across borders.
Dragana holds a Masters’s Degree in Chinese Society and Politics from the esteemed University of Oslo, where she gained an in-depth understanding of the complex dynamics shaping Chinese society. Prior to that, she completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Chinese Language and Literature at the University of Belgrade, further enhancing her linguistic and cultural expertise. Throughout her professional journey, Dragana has explored diverse roles, showcasing her versatility and adaptability. She has excelled as a journalist, a translator, and a teacher. Dragana has found her place in Office and HR management. Her expertise in this area has not only streamlined operations but also fostered a harmonious work environment.
Beyond her professional pursuits, Dragana treasures her family’s affiliation with a sailing community in Jersey City. Dragana loves enjoying a boating life together with her family and friends. Dragana is enjoying being a part of Tessa’s wonderful international team and is looking forward to contributing even more to its exciting and growing community!
Marine was born and raised in France, where she obtained a Master’s in international business. Her love for intercultural communication pushed her to live, study and work in varied countries from a young age. Among others, her experiences in Spain and South Korea helped her improve her language skills; she speaks French, English, Spanish, a little bit of Korean and even studied Mandarin for a few years. She strongly believes that languages and cultural awareness are a door to a more peaceful and understanding world. When she was 19 years old, she volunteered as a co-teacher and tutor at a Cambodian orphanage; it was then she understood what a key factor and privilege education is in a child’s life, and felt she wanted to participate in that mission.
Marine joined Tessa in 2019, and is proud to be part of the Tessa team, and help carry the strong values of the school, which very much align with hers.
Elodie was born and raised in Belgium. She has two bachelor degrees-one in advertising and one in office management. She moved to the United States for the second time in September 2021 with her husband and two boys. She had spent the previous 3 years living in Milan, Italy, learning the Italian language and culture.
Elodie is the longest Tessa employee! She worked for the School during her first stay in the US and was instrumental in its opening. At the time, she had helped set up various functions ranging from administration and human resources to accounting. She is currently in charge of Tessa’s bookkeeping, accounts receivable and payable, and compensation and benefits.
Her kids have been exposed to 3 languages since they were born- French, Dutch and English. They learned Italian when they lived in Italy. They learn so quickly at this age and they understand which language to use when communicating!
Zachary McKenna holds a Bachelor of Science in Special Education and worked as an Assistant Teacher before becoming Director of After School Programming for a Day Camp.
He has also been navigating the Mississippi river as a Cruise Director before joining Tessa’s ship!
Zac is fun loving! He hails from New York State, where previously he was the “Director of Fun” at Gate Hill Day Camp at Stony Point. During the school year he expanded Gate Hill’s After school programs, working in over a dozen locations across Manhattan and the Hudson Valley.
Zac has a passion and unmatched energy for working with students. His greatest joy comes from making others feel like they belong and helping them discover their most unique selves. He is very excited to bring his experience to this wonderful community at Tessa!
When not working, Zac’s first love is everything music. Dancing, producing, singing, and playing guitar, Zac is always playing his life’s soundtrack. Ask him about one of his many fun talents, or his famous Waka Waka dance!
Daisy was born and raised in New Jersey. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Rutgers University and is currently pursuing her masters degree in school psychology from Kean University.
She is fluent in Spanish as both her parents were born and raised in Mexico. In her free time, she likes painting, reading and most recently, baking!
Daisy has been part of Tessa since 2018 and is very excited to continue on being part of the tessa team! We love her warm smile and always positive and helpful attitude.
Barbara was born and raised in New York City. Her parents being from Dominican Republic, she was raised bilingual and speaks Spanish. Barbara worked for 10 years in hotels on 5th avenue, before joining the Tessa team. In her free time, she loves to play soccer, play the drums and skateboard. She’s also a dog lover. At Tessa, she enjoys being surrounded by kids, by friendly teachers, and immersed in various cultures and languages. It’s an opportunity for her to improve her language skills, she even started to learn French! She teams up with Michael Johnson, our cleaner, to make Tessa a clean and healthy environment.