Samantha DePergola of West Springfield, Mass., has been promoted to assistant director of Education & Human Resources at Eastern States Exposition (ESE), effective June 2. In this new role, she will continue to manage the responsibilities she has as adult education coordinator, but will also support, schedule and mentor new, part-time and transitioning staff members as well as handle human resources tasks.
DePergola has championed outreach to other Fairs and museums on behalf of Storrowton Village Museum while working at ESE. This is indicative of her effort to learn and grow within both industries and affirm ESE’s place as a leader in both fields.
When asked about her reaction to the offer, DePergola said, “I am so grateful for this opportunity to grow. Working at ESE full-time has fulfilled my dream, and I couldn’t imagine working somewhere else. It can be a hectic role, but I would not trade this job for another. I cannot do what I do here at ESE anywhere else, and I am so appreciative that I work for a company that feels more like a family than anything else.”
DePergola graduated from West Springfield High School in 2018. She then earned her associate’s degree in general studies from Springfield Technical Community College (STCC). Now, she is pursuing her bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst.
Prior to joining the team at ESE, DePergola spent two years working at Peter Pan Bus Lines as a payroll processor and human resources generalist. Her customer relations experience includes time spent as a client relations specialist at Complete Payroll Solutions and a spell serving as a legal assistant at Gelinas and Lefebvre P.C.
In August of 2021, DePergola joined ESE as a visitor experience assistant through Storrowton Village Museum. In June of 2022, she accepted a promotion to adult education coordinator. In this position, she coordinates volunteers; plans programming for ESE’s educational arm, the Village; maintains a daunting artifacts collection; and works in tandem with the youth education coordinator to curate youth event programming.
“I’m thrilled to see Samantha move into this next step in her career!” said Jessica Fontaine, director of Education and Human Resources at ESE and DePergola’s immediate supervisor. “Her unique skillset working with staff at her previous employer and her commitment to the preservation of New England’s history make her the perfect fit for this role. Her passion, knowledge and dedication shine through in all she at ESE.”
Outside of work, DePergola is vice president, assistant treasurer and immediate past president of the board of directors for Ramapogue Historical Society. This group works to maintain and promote the Josiah Day House in West Springfield, Mass., a property rich with history.
ESE extends congratulations and best wishes to its new assistant director of Education & Human Resources!