In November of 2018, it was announced that Hershey Middle School’s Assistant Principal, Tara Dorsey, would be stepping down from her position and would be replaced by Jacqueline Fuentes-Gillespie.

No was information provided for Dorsey’s resignation. However, Fuentes-Gillespie said she is excited to gain all the new experiences that will come along with her new position.

This school year marks Fuentes-Gillespie’s fifth year of working in Hershey Middle School, but previously she worked for ten years teaching social studies at Manheim Township High School. In between these two jobs, she was a stay-at-home mom for her two children.

Along with her decade of teaching experience, she has a master’s degree and a principal certification. She is also currently working toward her doctorate in educational leadership, which for her meant that applying for the Assistant Principal position was a “natural next step as far as leadership.”

After Fuentes-Gillespie applied for the position, her qualifications were reviewed by Principal Valentin, Mr. McFarland, Mr. Reifsnyder, Dr. Winslow, Dr. Shuman and several staff members. Then, on November 12, Fuentes-Gillespie was presented and approved at the school board meeting. Valentin said she was chosen because “She brings experience at HMS, a passion for working with kids and a positive outlook.”

With the shift to an administrative position finally happening, she would like for people to acknowledge her full, hyphenated last name, Fuentes-Gillespie. She also wishes for more people to know that she has her doctorate and has worked on obtaining it for a long time.

As positive as she is, she is also nervous to take on this new role in the administration. Fuentes-Gillespie said, “I always like people being happy and so what scares me is that I probably won’t make people happy all the time.” However, she feels that this is a reality she will have to accept with her new title.

Fuentes-Gillespie will begin working as the new Assistant Principal as soon as there is a replacement found to fill her current role as the school’s Family Consumer Sciences teacher. She hopes this replacement will be found sometime close to the beginning of the new year.