Stephen S. Hershey, Jr., the son of Stephen S. and Gail Hershey, was born on May 2, 1964 at George Washington University Hospital in Washington DC. He is the older brother of James Charles Hershey. Steve was raised in the Rockledge section of Bowie, Maryland and spent his youth playing year round sports in the Bowie Boys and Girls Club, swimming at Whitehall Pool and attending CCD and mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Steve went to Bowie High School, where he was defensive captain of the football team and graduated in 1982.
Steve was accepted to James Madison University where he majored in mathematics and shared the practice field with future NFL greats Gary Clark and Charles Haley. After a very inspiring conversation with head coach Challace McMillin, Steve transferred to Catholic University of American in Washington DC to enter the School of Engineering and to find the playing field for the Division III Cardinals. Steve had the unique opportunity to start for CUA in the last game played at the historic Brookland Stadium and the first game at the new DuFour Center field. Steve graduated in 1987 with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree.
Steve’s professional experience includes a broad base of executive management activities including a concentration in delivering integrated real estate services for the end users of commercial real estate. He is currently a Vice President for Jones Lang LaSalle, an industry leading professional services firm that specializes in creating value for commercial real estate clients. He has been recognized as a “Top Achiever”, the top 20% of revenue earners, in two of the last three years.
In January 2003, Steve was appointed as Assistant Secretary at the Department of Planning. Steve’s experience in corporate real estate was essential to working through the Ehrlich Administration’s initiative of evaluating owned and leased assets in an effort to maximize portfolio efficiency and cost savings. Steve’s development of the strategic platform and processes to implement the Governor’s real property initiatives continue to provide measurable results and visible successes throughout the State.
As the Assistant Secretary of Conservation and Land Management, Steve’s division oversaw over 400,000 acres of State-owned lands held by the Department of Natural Resources. Under Steve’s leadership, all DNR property management functions and real estate transactions were centralized and consolidated under one division. The policy and procedures along with a new centralized database was established to coordinate land use functions and increase revenues. Steve created the Asset Management unit to promote and develop the use and rehabilitation of DNR facilities through public-private partnerships. These activities generated or increased revenues from State-owned lands and facilities with the goal of becoming a self-sustaining operation.
Steve also managed the State’s land conservation and preservation programs and implemented Governor Ehrlich’s initiative of using a science-based approach to protect lands that directly enhance the health and restoration of the Chesapeake Bay.
Prior to serving the State of Maryland through the Ehrlich Administration, Steve held positions with the Trammell Crow Company where he led the project management services group in the Mid-Atlantic region. During the summer of 2001, Steve worked on implementing the company’s strategic plan of expanding its International Services delivery system. Steve was a member of the Value Identification team sent to Muenster, Germany to analyze a potential strategic alliance with DeTe Immobilien, the real estate division of Deutsche Telekom.
Steve also operated his own consulting firm and was a partner in a start-up sign manufacturing company. He also held positions as Director of Facilities with restaurant conglomerate Planet Hollywood International and Director of Tenant Coordination with Prime Outlets, a national owner and operator of outlet shopping centers.
Steve and his wife Wendy bought their first home in Queenstown in 1999 where they live with their two boxers. They are parishioners at Our Mother of Sorrows Catholic Church in Centreville. Steve coaches youth football for the South River Gators and finds opportunities to spend time on the water or outdoors. Steve received his Masters of Business Administration from George Washington University in 2002. He is a LEED Accredited Professional.
