This semester, WJPS welcomes its new principal, Dr. Michelle Roberts-Bacchus.

Dr. Bacchus was born and raised in Guyana before moving to Canada where she ran a youth group. After immigrating to the United States, she pursued teaching.

Before taking the role of principal, Dr. Bacchus worked at the Queens North High Schools District Office, serving as the district instructional achievement coach. She also fulfilled the role of director of curriculum instruction and assessment.

Dr. Bacchus said, “I joined a teachers fellowship program and that was it. I never looked back.”

Dr. Bacchus has three fundamental goals for the future of WJPS.

The first goal is making the school environment reflect its name.

Dr. Bacchus stated, “You as students will be engaging in identifying journalists that you admire. Then you’ll vote on which journalists you want to see on our walls. So when you walk up the stairs…the first thing that you will see is a representation of who you chose.”

The second goal is signing up WJPS for local journalism competitions.

Dr. Bacchus added, “I want to have students involved in local competitions. I have been communicating with our staff, students, and parents about some of the things that I would like to do. I have different people reaching out to me, offering internships for journalism students.”

The final goal is starting journalism in sixth grade.

Dr. Bacchus said, “I want to change our focus to represent who we are. Our focus is reading, writing, and discussion because, as a journalist, that’s who you are. In anything that you do in life, you need those three practices. My passion is helping my students do that in the most effective way so that at the end of the day, you are able to do what you have to do to the best of your ability.”

Photo by Mr. Sharma