Jr/Sr High School principal Wendy Bridges resigns
Manchester Jr/Sr High School
by Marsha Chartrand
In another surprise for the Manchester Community Schools district, on February 28 Superintendent Dr. Brad Bezeau, who announced his own resignation in early February and will complete his term in June, sent MCS families a letter sharing another resignation from the administrative team.
The letter stated, “This week at the Lincoln Consolidated Schools Board of Education Meeting, Manchester Junior/Senior High School Principal Wendy Bridges was approved to become the next Principal at Lincoln High School. Her last day with us will be Friday, March 21, 2025, giving us the next three weeks to ensure that the scheduling process and master schedule are completed for next year and that all end-of-the-year events are planned and coordinated.”
Bridges, who came to Manchester in the summer of 2022, said that she would miss the relationships she had developed during her almost three years at MCS.
“I am saddened to leave because I love this staff, students, and good people of Manchester,” she said. “We have made great progress toward reaching the goals we have set,” she added. “I will be working closely with the interim principal, Mr. Lindeman, to provide him with all the necessary support and information he needs to finish out the year.”
Beginning on Monday, March 31, Josh Lindeman will begin serving as the interim Manchester Jr/Sr High School principal for the remainder of the school year, and Dr. Bezeau will return to his dual role as principal of Riverside Intermediate School and MCS superintendent for the last two months and one week of school, as the district posts to fill these positions during this time.
“We certainly thank Ms. Bridges for her incredible commitment and dedication to our students and our school district, and we wish her the very best on the next steps in her educational journey,” Dr. Bezeau stated in his letter.
Josh Lindeman was hired as the new Manchester High School varsity football coach and principal at Riverside Intermediate School last May, and is partway through his first school year at MCS. He has 18 years of experience in the field of education.
Manchester High School has had four principals in rapid succession — following Kevin Mowrer, who was hired as principal in 2006 and left in September 2017 after 11 years, Eric McCalla was hired in September 2017 and resigned in August 2021. The board quickly hired Andy Rousselo in August 2021, and he left in May of 2022. Bridges was hired in June 2022 and will be leaving March 2025, after serving about 2 1/2 years.
School board president Sandra Wiitala stated, “On behalf of the Manchester Community Schools Board of Education I would like to thank Ms. Bridges for her service to our district and our community while serving as our Jr/Sr High School principal for the last nearly three years. We wish her and her family the very best in these next steps in her educational leadership career.”
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