Ahr Apprentice: Grad makes it to show’s 11th episode
By Kathleen Ogle
Managing Editor
EDISON — She did not succeed in becoming Donald Trump’s fifth apprentice, but Bishop Ahr High School graduate Tammy Trenta considers her run on his show a priceless experience. Out of the thousands of applicants and 18 candidates, Trenta survived on The Apprentice for 11 weeks. Then on May 15, together with family and friends gathered at Bishop Ahr’s auditorium, Trenta watched her final episode on the show. There was a collective gasp of disappointment as Trump said those dreaded words, “You’re fired,” but a smiling Trenta seemed to take the announcement in stride.
On the episode, Trenta served as project manager of Synergy. Her team’s task was to set up an interactive display environment for Microsoft’s x-box 360 in a Wal-Mart store. On the show she said that during the project her teammates did not support or respect her, and that she did most of the work. Those problems plus lack of prices led to her downfall.
Prior to the show, Trenta said she had decided to step up for the project to prove to Trump what she could accomplish. In previous episodes, her strategy was to “not engage in drama.” When it changed, so did her outcome.
Trenta said she applied for The Apprentice because she felt “ready to compete with people of high caliber,” and even after being fired expressed confidence in her abilities.
To challenge and encourage
The previous Friday, Trenta spoke to Bishop Ahr students assembled in the high school’s auditorium where she encouraged them to rely on their faith during tough times and to always maintain their integrity.
Sister Donna said she hoped Trenta would challenge and encourage the students to do positive things with their lives. “She knows the right things to do,” Sister Donna said. “She gives credit to her school and her Catholic education.”
Trenta described The Apprentice as “business boot camp.” One of the reasons she was interested in being on the program was she was starting a new company and wanted a platform to promote her product, a laptop accessory bag.
Contestants for The Apprentice undergo psychological testing and background checks, Trenta said. She mistakenly thought they wanted “really smart people.” Instead, she found that they want people with “really different personalities.”
She acknowledged the difficulty of becoming friends with people whom she was competing with. “We’re all trying to make sure we’re going to be successful,” she said. “The pressure brings out the highest highs and the lowest lows.”
She described Donald Trump as a smart businessman, but said she did not always agree with his methods. “If something goes wrong Donald Trump never takes responsibility. He always blames it on somebody else,” she said. “I beg to differ. Take responsibility. Don’t blame it other people.
“Not only that, hold other people accountable,” she advised students. “If you don’t hold people accountable, you will never be successful in business if your success depends on the work of other people. You can’t do everything yourself. Delegate and hold people accountable.”
She described high school as a time of adversity, when students often judge or stereotype each other. She recalled her 10-year high school reunion where she
noticed that the people who were not as popular back in high school now had “cool jobs” and they were “good looking.”
While a student at Bishop Ahr High School, Trenta, class of 1990, was president of the Spanish Club, captain of the softball team and a member of the school’s student council.
Play the game of life
Trenta said she approaches life as if it were a game. “To me life is about playing a game, and we need to decide if we want to get in there and play the game or sit on the sidelines. Sometimes you lose. It’s not fun to have a losing team. The key is playing and losing is better than not playing at all. Are you going to sit on the sidelines or are you going to get in there and play the game?” she asked.
She advised students to surround themselves with positive people, to express their own opinions and to not let anyone else define them. “Don’t be a follower. Most people are followers,” she said. She also advised the students to maintain their integrity, morals and values. “You don’t want to be known as the guy or girl who lied or cheated,” she said.
After graduating from Bishop Ahr, Trenta attended Arizona State University where she earned a communications degree as well as a master’s degree in business administration.
But college did not go smoothly. During her freshman year, her parents
divorced and were on the verge of bankruptcy. Faced with the loss of their financial support, she got a job as a waitress and borrowed money to pay for her education. “You’re not always going to have people you can count on. Sometimes you just need to count on yourself,” she said.
Accomplishing something on her own, she said, built confidence and self respect. Her parents are very proud of her, and she knows she did something that not everybody can do.
Diane Romano, a Bishop Ahr senior from South Plainfield, said she liked what Trenta said about integrity and not going along with the crowd. “Peer pressure is hard and sometimes you get scared,” she said. Romano, who has a strong interest in science, plans to study nursing at Rutgers University. She also wants to travel to different countries. “There’s a lot to see,” she said.
Before Trenta’s appearance on The Apprentice, viewers were acquainted with another Bishop Ahr grad, Tara Dowdell, class of 1994, who participated in the program’s third season. Dowdell was fired in that season’s sixth episode when she led a team effort to use wall graffiti to promote a video game. Trump told Dowdell she fell short when she did not spend enough time familiarizing herself with the product.
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law