When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Sean Heggan, like thousands of college students nationwide, was in trouble. As a Tourism & Hospitality Management major at Montgomery County Community College, the 25-year-old needed to secure an internship for the summer in order to complete the program and graduate this fall.

And he’d gotten one. He’d managed to land a position at Yellowstone National Park. That is until the virus turned everything upside down.

“I was supposed to be working in restaurants as a server assistant,” he said. “Most restaurants though will not open for sit-down dining. Just grab and go, so the internship was canceled.”

Yet by some miracle, he was able to turn it around and land the last open position at the park.

Heggan is a 2013 Archbishop Wood High School graduate. After high school, he went straight to college at Temple University for a year and a half as a journalism and broadcasting major.

“It wasn’t the right time. I was not in the right mindset. So I left school and started working couple jobs as they came to stay employed,” he said.

During that time away from school he became a bartender and quickly discovered his passion for hospitality.

“I always had readiness to help people and I’m also been a good speaker,” he said. “I’ve got good interpersonal skills. Hospitality is the best of both worlds.”

After a year and a half of bartending, Heggan knew it was time to go back to school and enrolled at MCCC.

Now with graduation on the horizon, he needed to fit an internship over the summer.

Running out of time before the spring semester ended and scrambling to replace his spot at Yellowstone, Heggan turned to Shawn Andre Murray, Hospitality Management Assistant Professor, to see if he knew anyone at the park who could help. The gamble paid off. 

“As is the story for ten thousands of college students across the country, Sean’s internship was canceled due to this pandemic but based on my relationships at the national park, they were able to reinstate the internship and reassign him to a position for the summer, which is a blessing,” said Murray. “This student also may be extending his internship at Yellowstone into the fall taking advantage of MCCC online course offerings. I’m proud of the work Sean’s performed in the Tourism & Hospitality Management program, and wish him the best of luck.”

In mid-May, Heggan got a call from an unknown number from Montana. Normally he’d let a call like that go to voicemail thinking it was spam, but since parts of Yellowstone are located in Montana, he decided to risk it and pick up the phone.

“They said they had one more position available,” he said. “They asked about my willingness to take it and I said yes. So this internship means a lot.”

In early June, Heggan packed up the car and drove across the country, taking pit stops to document his journey.

When he arrived at Yellowstone, he first began by working as a camper services attendant in Grant Village, Wyo. His responsibilities included providing information to the park’s visitors and keeping its facilities clean.

By late June, however, the park began to move into the second phase of its reopening strategy, which loosened restrictions put in place due to COVID-19. The plan called for Heggan’s supervisor to return to his position as a housekeeping manager. That meant good news for Heggan as it left the position of supervisor at the campground services building vacant. He was offered the position and was set to begin the job July 18.

With an internship secure, and graduation now all but guaranteed, Heggan said he’s already planning for the future.

“Currently I am weighing my options,” he said. “Right now I’m leaning pretty heavily toward going to a four year institution. Even though I’m confident enough in my own ability, having four year degree will likely give me leg up moving forward.”

Whatever he decides to do from here, Heggan is thankful for the opportunities he’s been afforded through MCCC that will lead him toward a successful career post-graduation.

“I finally have a track to go on,” he said. “For a while, I really did think I’d be moving about for majority of my life. I finally have a plan and it really feels good.”

Students interested in learning more about the Tourism and Hospitality Management program are encouraged to attend an online informational session Saturday, Aug. 8 from 10-11 a.m. This event will include a live Q&A session with instructors, admissions and academic advisors. For more information, visit the  online information session.