Principal. Psychology enthusiast. Beard grower. C-Day speaker. This is all we know about Mr. Dolcy, our mysterious but beloved principal. I ventured into the lion’s den (B9) to interview Mr. Dolcy, seeking out the sacred information that all HSMSE students crave. For example, is he a morning or night showerer? Keep reading to find out.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

Addison: Where did you grow up? What were you like?

Mr. Dolcy: I grew up in New Jersey, in Toms River, and I went to Toms River High School North. Most of my summers were definitely at the beach, and some of those high school days when I was a junior or senior were spent at the beach too. But times were very different and people weren’t worried about things such as attendance, because when you were a senior you were pretty much done by the first week of June. It’s very different in New York City, and that was also many, many years ago.

What “clique” were you a part of in high school?

Jeez! I would say no specific clique, but I’m sure friends of mine would have different opinions on that. A funny story is that in my Junior year, my cross country coach was very surprised when I said I was going to be late to practice because I had to attend an AP class. He started joking, almost like he was shocked that I was a “smart” kid. He thought I was making it up to get out of practice. And then the other kids chimed in and were like “he’s not just really smart, he’s also in the band!” I was thinking “oh my God, oh my God. We don’t need to talk about this.” And then, another kid jumped up and said “he’s not just in the band, he’s literally the drum major. He’s in charge of the entire band.” 

So, I was in my high school jazz band, and starting my sophomore year, I was the lead alto, which sort of runs the show. And I was first chair clarinet until I graduated. So I did concert band, orchestra, and jazz band. When our high school band plays at the football games and you’re the drum major, you have to lead a 250 member band to the field, so you also have to wear a very specific uniform.

Did you have the hat?

Yep, I had the hat. I also held the baton thing that I had to throw and catch. That year our theme was Grease, and I had to wear a very, very, very tight black shirt and jeans. But, you’re typically disguised enough that unless you’re looking for your friend you wouldn’t know that they’re in the band. As I approached the field, the entire cross country team was standing along the fence of the field, and just started screaming my name. I was SO embarrassed, none of them even knew that I did this, it was never talked about. All of these groups were converging and I was like “oh my god!” I don’t know what that represents about cliques, but yeah.

What did you want to be when you grew up? Did you ever imagine yourself becoming a principal?

I worked in a lot of restaurants and bartended and stuff, and I think if anybody I went to college with or worked with knew that I was a principal today, they would be like “you’ve got to be kidding me, that is insane.” But that’s because my personality has always been very outgoing, but very blunt.

I went to college for engineering, and I think earlier in high school I wanted to be an aeronautical engineer. I went to University of Pittsburgh, and my major was in mechanical engineering but my minor was actually in material science.

The summer before college started I was waiting, and one of my friends and her mother had come into the restaurant I was working at. The mom started asking me all these questions, like “What are you interested in?” and I said engineering, and she was like “Oh, no way, I’m a head engineer at the naval base. Why don’t you start working for me over the summer so that you can have an internship before the school year starts?” I pretty much got a job just by having a gregarious attitude, so tip for everybody, you never know when you can make good connections.

Do you have a pet?

Two dogs. Bailey is thirteen years old. I actually got him right before I started working here. He is a pitbull mix, so he is half pitbull, half English bulldog. He’s this fat little thing. He’s getting old, so he’s slowed down, but he used to be very feisty. And we got a COVID pet, a puppy, and that’s Dozer. He’s also a pitbull mix, mostly pitbull, but mixed a little with Great Dane so he has oddly long back legs. He’s hyper. But they’re both our favorite, favorite dogs, we love them.

Do you have a pet peeve?

Hmmm… I probably have too many. People that take on a job or life experience, and then spend an eternity complaining about said thing they took on and are actively doing. I don’t get complaints here, the teachers and admin are not really like that. I get it more with my friends, and I’m like “Dude, get another job. You brought that on yourself!”

Are you a morning or night showerer?

Both. Twice a day.

Favorite movie?

Of all time? As Good as It Gets, with Jack Nicholson. I like the theme of it. And Tuesdays with Morrie.

Who is your style icon?

My style icon? I don’t even know what… What does that mean?

Someone who you admire how they dress, their style.

Oh, yes. But I want to make sure that before I say their name that they’re not currently in some kind of scandal in the world. *Looks it up.* Tom Hardy.

Book that everybody should read?

There’s a number of them. I want to think back to one of my favorites without it being cliche. I would say Tuesdays with Morrie, the book and the movie. It’s a little depressing but I loved it. I like the way it looks at life.

What kind of music do you listen to? Do you have a favorite genre or artist?

I would say I used to, but now it’s whatever’s on the radio, if I’m not listening to podcasts or AP Classroom videos so I can see what they’re sharing with you guys [to make sure] it’s not something crazy. [In the past,] I used to like mostly alternative and rap music. Pop and R&B have been the most consistent throughout my life. ‘80s music is also an all time favorite, cause it’s always fun.

Presently, [I like] country music.

Really?!

Yeah, I’ll put on country music. Even though it’s always about the same theme of somebody in a pickup truck, who’s upset, he’s with his dog, and he’s upset with his wife. But I just like listening to it in the background.

Something that society deems as odd that you wish were normalized?

I think it’s weird that people care so much about other people’s identity. And I equally think it’s sort of nuts that people think this has not been something that society has grappled with in all of the ‘80s without it being an issue. Be whoever you want. If you want long hair, have long hair. If you want to dye your hair, dye your hair, like why is it this question of gender and [gender] assignment? People should be free to be exactly who they are. It’s odd to me that people care so much. I think it’s because people think we have to be in this politically polarized society, and it’s making kids feel as if they have to assign themselves into different buckets. Be whoever you want to be. Be whoever you feel is closest to what makes you happy, heard, and understood. Essentially, it’s weird to me when people think it’s odd that someone is odd. Why do you care? It just seems crazy.

What is your biggest regret?

I made a horrible financial decision. Before I moved to New York, I had been living in a three story house on top of a mountain side that overlooked all of Pittsburgh, paying very little rent, and making a very nice salary as an engineer. I became a teacher, so I moved to New York, but I also wanted to be close to home. And I wanted to feel like I could be in New York City, living my life in my twenties, and just loving it. I spent every single dollar I had saved to live in an apartment in Park Slope—which I couldn’t afford— while becoming a teacher and going to grad school, and dealing with debt that I put upon myself. I simply could’ve moved in with my parents for six months, gotten situated, and then just moved to New York. Probably the worst decision of my life.

At what time in your life did you have the greatest self-awakening or revelation? What was it?

There was a moment where I thought that the best thing to do was be as bold and honest in any situation as I could be. I eventually realized that while some people see that as confidence, and maybe leadership, others see it as a weak person who doesn’t have a better choice of words, or doesn’t know how to pause and reflect. I had noticed with a particular group of friends that I would hang out with, that I would say, “Oh my friends are so crazy and so silly in the way that they act,” and one day we were all out, and I said to myself “Oh my God, I’m just like them, I need to grow up.”

I cared so much about kids, and that’s why I liked education. I worked in schools where kids had a lot of challenges. What I loved about the job was how much I could fight for a kid that didn’t have a voice yet, or just stay late so a kid could hang out and not have to go home because they didn’t want to. When I saw parents, or the world, or the system, I think I just wanted to fight against those things and say “Wake up, you need to help this kid!” What I didn’t realize was that you don’t know someone else’s situation, and once I saw that, it changed me forever; I realized, “Wait, that’s nuts.” I couldn’t judge those parents who I knew nothing about. I had the luxury to go wherever I wanted at the end of the day, whereas people who are married or have kids have responsibilities. So I stopped just giving my opinion and being so blunt and saying “This is how it is.” Instead, I thought more about “Why does this person not see this perspective?” and when [it would be best for me to] just shut up. Sometimes the best thing you can do is not talk. This [realization] was definitely in my late twenties, and I decided “I need to be a better person.”

What is your greatest fear?

That people [in] society who have always thought for themselves—[the] independent thinkers, the go-getters, the leaders, the unique people—will turn into robots that are part of a system because of the constant change in social networks and communication because of technology. I fear that they will lose their unique identity, which, yes, creates arguments and differences, but that’s the solution to improvement in the world, socially.

What animal do you relate to the most?

I’ve never thought about that question before. I would need to be an animal that is very loud and slightly obnoxious. Very anxious, but then is able to, in a second, be very calm.

Maybe a pitbull. They say people are like their dogs.

I can see that. Maybe. Yeah, as long as people can understand that pitbulls can be very cuddly, cute, and adorable too. Maybe like a pitbull mixed with a lab.

Do you feel fulfilled?

Yes. I would say I have taken a different path than a typical adult. I’ve worked hard, played hard, loved, and lost. A lot of people in their twenties may do that for a year or two, and then they go along with the societal expectation to marry off. I didn’t want to do any of that, I didn’t want to subscribe to what anybody else termed as what you’re “supposed to” do. So I got to travel a lot more than my friends who were getting married earlier, and I didn’t have those expenses and challenges that they were dealing with. Instead, I was really focused on me, my career, my friendships, and who I was dating at the time, and where that was going, but I was really committed to myself in my twenties. I wanted to make sure that my outlook on life wasn’t based on regrets, and I saw difficulty as that grit and those marks of growing. You’ve got to experience life to grow. I love everything that I’ve done.

I think about this question a lot, which is why I am at that place of feeling fulfilled. But there was a period of time when I had given up on engineering because I was teaching, and really loved teaching. It was hard to stick with, because of how little money I made, but it all worked out in time because I stuck with it. I’ve got amazing friendships and family. Sure, there are bad things along the way, but the outlook that you always want to get through things and live in the moment shows you that life can be fulfilling. You get out what you put in.

Advice for HSMSE students? Wishes? Praises?

I love how much our students are self-starters with things in education that I, for one, definitely was not. I love that they’re driven. Every single kid here is driven, whether other students in the class know it, but I can see it because I have their records and I know all these things that you guys have done to get here. The things that I see kids doing all the time are insane, so I feel very lucky to be at a school with such amazing kids.

My advice is to find a way not to sweat everything. It’s hard because you guys think on a level of adults, but you are still teenagers. I think you have a harder time in life at this age, because you think about bigger questions that adults tend to think about. You’re not wrong for doing it, ‘cause you’re thinking ahead. But unfortunately, the people that are bright and lead, do have the weight of the world on their shoulders. So my advice is to take it in stride. Everything will work out just how it’s supposed to, and you guys will be running the world. I wish teenagers understood the way you’ll think about everything ten years from now, which is impossible to do at that age. But yeah, what’s it, that 13 Going on 30, that old movie?

Yeah, with Jennifer Garner.

Yes, I wish you guys could have a dream that was so life altering, where you realized, “Ah! It’s all going to work out. It’s going to be fine.” Because that reassurance is not there, and when you’re older you realize that some things in your life just weren’t what they felt like in that moment. 

Addison: Well, those are all of my questions. Thank you!

Mr. Dolcy: I noticed you didn’t ask the one about my tattoos. The answer is that I scribble on myself sometimes.

No one will ever know.

Well, now you know.