The Sun

Fired, Hired and Never WasFree Access



Hershey girls’ lacrosse, 2019. Photo: Geno Simonetti.



By Drew Weidman

One Hershey High coach was fired, one barely kept his job and another one apparently never had a job.

All that and more at the Monday, June 24, Derry Township School Board meeting, where the fact the board passed a budget with a tax increase was a mere footnote in what turned out to be a meeting centered around the firing and rehiring of coaches.

Ken Taylor was fired as the girls’ lacrosse coach after his contract was not renewed, failing by a 6-3 vote.

Hershey swim coach Greg Fastrich kept his job after getting approved by a 6-3 vote.

And Hershey Middle School physical education teacher Troy Smith was never brought up for a vote, despite being tagged by newly hired Hershey football coach Mark Painter as the Trojans defensive coordinator.

Of the support expressed at the meeting, the large majority was for Fastrich, who has coached the Hershey swim team since 1997.

While it isn’t clear what the consternation surrounding Fastrich was regarding, terms like “witch hunt” and “accusations” were uttered by the public throughout the meeting.

The board heard from parents and former swimmers, who spoke in favor of Fastrich. Some read letters, authored by former swimmers who went through Fastrich’s program.

“I witnessed Greg create a safe environment for his swimmers. I felt both cared for and loved by Greg Fastrich,” said Erin Peda, a 2004 Hershey grad.

Neither the board nor the public would elaborate on why Fastrich’s job was called into question.

Fastrich will make $7,327 this coming season.

As for Taylor, who’s been the coach since 2013, he and his assistants Erin Zimmer and Amanda Leiphart are gone after their contracts weren’t approved for the upcoming lacrosse season.

Kathy Sicher, Donna Cronin, Lindsey Drew, Maria Memmi, Terry Singer and Tricia Steiner voted against rehiring the trio.

Hershey lacrosse player Elizabeth Newman spoke in support of Taylor, saying the coach cared about his players and helped unify them at the beginning of the year amidst controversy.

“Our team was fractured at the beginning of the season, but by the second week it was like it never happened,” Newman said. “We were one team again. We were healed because of him.”

The Smith situation was a little more complicated.

He was brought in over the winter by Painter to run the defense and began laying the groundwork for a whole new scheme and playbook, only to find out in May he wasn’t going to be hired.

His name was never brought forth for a vote, despite the urging from players and coaches at several school board meetings.

He was, however, approved at Monday’s meeting to head the Hershey Powerlifting program and remains the phys ed teacher at the middle school.

“I do not understand why he was not brought forward. It is unfortunate,” parent Patricia McCorkle said. “He would have been a great addition. There was a lot of excitement with the team and I’m hoping they can find a way to overcome this.”

With the football preseason just around the corner, Painter is now tasked with finding a coordinator to lead his defense.

Prior to the public comment session at the end of the meeting, board member Judy Haverstick read a statement.

“In regards to all the coaching decisions that have been made this evening, whether we all agree or disagree with them, as a community and as a board it is my hope that we can move forward and support all the teams and coaches for the kids and the school community,” part of the statement read.

Budget Includes Tax Increase

With a room full of swim, lacrosse and football parents and players waiting to learn the fate of their coaches, the board did approve the 2019-2020 budget with a 1.4 percent tax increase.

In the budget, the largest expense increase is for salaries, where the cost went up by $784,570. Much of that is connected with the district’s new full-day kindergarten program, which began in 2018.

According to the district, the real estate tax increase, along with increases in the assessed value of properties in the district, will generate an additional $594,000.

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