Jenifer Hastert has spent the last seven years working behind-the-scenes at Dakota Ridge High School. Between communicating with families and staff and working alongside Mrs. Keller, Hastert’s day is filled. Despite her busy schedule, though, she always makes time to help whenever possible.
Q: What do you do as the principal’s secretary?
A: My job involves helping all administrators and teachers. I answer the phone; I answer a million questions a day from parents, or staff, or students; I help with coordinating substitutes; and if we need Brandon McDaniels for something, I help with that. So, I do a little bit of everything.
Q: What is your favorite part of your position?
A: I love it when I can help somebody, like really help somebody —whether that’s students, or teachers, or admin. Like, just the relief on their face when they realize that someone is in their corner, and I can be helpful, that’s what I like. And, I like that this job is different every day. You never know what’s going to come down your way.
Q: What is your least favorite part of your position?
A: When guest teachers don’t show up, which happens. Then you have to scramble and find coverage.
Q: What did you do before working at DRHS?
A: So, a long time ago I was a teacher. I taught kindergarten and first grade. Then I had my own kids, so I stayed home for a long time with them. Then I came back to a school but not in a teaching role.
Q: Why did you decide not to come back as a teacher?
A: Well, by that time my teaching license had expired, and I think there’s a lot of expectations on teachers, and I wasn’t sure I wanted that role. So I chose a different role.
Q: If you could pick any other job at DRHS which would you pick and why?
A: I don’t know, I can tell you some jobs I don’t want. I think Ms. Abeyta’s job as the financial secretary is really hard. I wouldn’t want that job. She has to do so much… Maybe I’d be a teacher like Ms. Terrel in catering. I love cooking and I think that would be fun.
Q: What do you do outside of school?
A: My kids are older, my youngest is in college. We like to cook, and we like to spend time outside in the mountains. We like to hike and walk, those kinds of things.
Q: Where do your kids go?
A: My oldest goes to medical school at the University of Washington. And then my middle son, he went to Miami University in Ohio and is here right now. My youngest goes to Cal Poly, and she’s a wine and viticulture major.
Q: What is one interesting fact about you?
A: So, I’d mentioned that we liked to cook. Well, we rarely make the same meal twice. Every week we make a menu, and it’s always something different. So we cook a lot of different kinds of things.
Q: What about cooking do you like?
A: I like that my husband and I do it together. I like that it’s creative, and I like to eat.
Q: What is one of your favorite meals you’ve made?
A: Right now we’re into making wood-fired pizzas, and you can be super creative with those. I’m going to say that right now.
Q: What is your life motto?
A: Keep your side of the street clean. In other words, you need to be responsible for your own self, be kind, and do what you need to do, because if your side of the street is clean, it’s easier on everybody else.
