By: Richard L. Smith
Just off the main office in a small conference room in Bloomfield High School, I had a chance to sit and speak with the 2024-2025 salutatorian in a 45-minute conversation with senior Teresa Nole emerged into something far more potent than an academic success story—it became a reflection of strength, spirit, and the sheer courage it takes to live authentically.
With a GPA of 4.414, Teresa is set to graduate second in a class of nearly 500. But I've found during our conversation that the road to becoming Salutatorian wasn't simply paved with perfect scores and academic accolades.
It was shaped by choices— very difficult ones—that revealed who she is and what she stands for.
"I knew I couldn't be Valedictorian if I stayed in choir," she said, not with regret, but with firm resolve. "But I didn't want to let go of music. It was too important to me."
Music, for Teresa, is more than melody—it is ministry. It's expression. It's community. And it's joy.
During the intriguing conversation, I learned that for four years, she poured her heart into Bloomfield's Choir, performing a cappella at local churches and in the community, most meaningfully at St. Thomas the Apostle, where her faith was always nurtured. 
Her love for the arts, particularly music, became a quiet act of rebellion that has ultimately changed a system. After teachers learned how the weighted GPA policy penalized her for choosing choir, the school introduced honors credit options for music students, so others wouldn't have to choose between achievement and passion.
It was so clear to me during the conversation that the moment when she chose to honor her love for the arts over the title of first defines Teresa more than any trophy ever could. As a visual broadcasting artist with a decades-long education in New Jersey, her courage to stand for what she believed in the arts made my heart proud.
“I was frustrated at first,” she admitted. “But I knew I wouldn’t do anything differently. I stood up for something I believed in.” -Teresa Nole
Her voice, gentle but clear, resonates with both humility and power. From the start of the interview, she described herself as "a nerd in every sense of the word"—someone who loves reading, math, learning, astronomy, and spending time with friends.
However, I've found that what makes her truly different is not just what she loves; it's how fully she immerses herself in that love.
Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she found herself in a rut, Teresa told me she chose to create. "I taught myself how to crochet with YouTube videos," she said with a smile. "Now it's one of my favorite hobbies. I've made so many stuffed animals and even clothes. That time, though hard, helped me grow."
Teresa said her parents—her mother a teacher, her father a lifelong learner—instilled in her the discipline to work hard and the freedom to explore her passions. "They raised me to do my best," she said, "but they never expected perfection.
They just wanted me to care." Yup, and care she did. She ran cross country, led academic clubs, and pursued astronomy with the same enthusiasm she brought to music and ministry.
This fall, she will attend Penn State University as an astronomy and astrophysics major, choosing a path guided by curiosity, academic rigor, and a quiet love for the heavens. "I know it sounds strange," she said, "but when I look at the stars, I see art. I see beauty. There's something deeply spiritual about the universe."
To Teresa, the boundary between science and art, between faith and fact, doesn't really exist. She sees the divine in the details—an equation, a galaxy, a harmony sung in an empty church.
"I think God's leading me somewhere," she reflected. "I'm just not sure where yet. But I know there's a purpose to it all."
She is already planning to dive into research, join clubs, and continue playing piano and singing at Penn State. "It's a big place," she said, "but I'm ready to find where I belong."
For me, Teresa's story is a reminder that excellence isn't always about being first—it's about being whole. It's about holding fast to the things you love, even when the world tells you they aren't enough. It's about letting yourself grow—even when it's hard.
"To anyone else who's been called a nerd," she said, "embrace it. Caring deeply about something isn't a weakness—it's a strength. Don't let go of the things that make you feel alive just because someone else doesn't understand them. That's not your problem."
I know that on graduation day, Bloomfield High's Salutatorian, Teresa Nole, didn't just graduate with honors—she graduated with integrity.
In a world that often rewards compromise, she chose conviction. And Bloomfield High School, her community, and the countless students who will now benefit from her quiet courage are all better for it.
Her name may be listed second in her class, but in the hearts of those who know her story, she is first in many ways than one.
Congratulations, Teresa, continue to make us proud.