By Antonella Sessa
November 5, 2021
This year, Resurrection has a new look. With many new faces teaching in the classrooms and in administration, it is important that we get to know the most recent additions to the Resurrection faculty. Recently, I was given the opportunity to meet and interview the new Assistant Principal for Teaching and Learning, Ms. Terri Hanrahan, to learn more about her background and personal life.
Ms. Hanrahan was born and raised in Evergreen Park, a southern suburb of Chicago. She is the seventh of eight siblings from a very large Irish-Catholic family, having four brothers and three sisters. Her father and grandparents were from Ireland and her Irish heritage was heavily incorporated into her childhood. She attended Mother McAuley High School, where she found her passion. Ms. Hanrahan was inspired to work in the field of education when one of her social studies teachers at Mother McAuley got her on the right educational path and set her up for success. She received her bachelor's degree in history from Loyola University Chicago, her master's degree in religious studies from Mundelein College, and her master's degree in education from the University of Illinois-Chicago. In addition to her bachelor’s degree and two master's degrees, she completed the coursework for a doctorate degree at Illinois State University.
Ms. Hanrahan has worked in education for 35 years. For 17 of those years she taught in a classroom and for the remaining years she has had jobs in both teaching and administration. She is very excited to be back in an all-girls high school environment and has loved how warm and welcoming the Resurrection community has been to her. She enjoys that students are being leaders in many ways, especially when leading the school in morning prayer. Ms. Hanrahan is looking forward to continuing to grow enrollment, being a part of our transition to a LaSallian school, and embracing her teaching and learning skill set. She hopes to take a solid look at assessment and get to know Resurrection’s strengths and weaknesses so she can further improve our learning environment.
In addition to asking Ms. Hanrahan about her background and aspirations, I was able to ask her some interesting questions to learn more about her. Ms. Hanrahan loves to travel and hike. When she traveled to Peru, she was able to hike and see Machu Picchu. Her favorite TV show is Derry Girls because she loves the Irish humor that they use. Her favorite movies are The Lion in Winter and Uncle Buck. She loves to eat Italian food and swordfish and drink lemon flavored Vie Water from Aldi. When she was in high school she participated in theater and service activities. She held a job at Burger King and also washed dishes at a convent. Her favorite classes in high school and college were her history classes and courses in biomedical ethics. She loves music with a 70s feel to it, especially the band Earth,Wind & Fire.
It was a pleasure to talk to and get to know Ms. Hanrahan. She has many goals and aspirations that will make Resurrection an even better community than it already is. If you have any questions for her, feel free to email her at thanrahan@reshs.org.