Interim Principal to Stay at Betsy Ross School

An interim principal who started at one of Mahwah’s elementary schools last year will stay in the township for one more school year before the district looks to hire a permanent replacement, district officials announced at a Board of Education meeting last week.

Roger Bayersdorfer will remain principal of the Betsy Ross School for one more year, Assistant Superintendent Janet Donohue said last Wednesday.

“We are very happy to have [Bayersdorfer] for another year,” she said. “He is a pro, has been an instructional leader, and is so gentile with the kids. He’s really great.”

Donohue said the district decided not to look for a permanent replacement this year for a few reasons.

First, she said the district is looking to provide stability at the school, which has seen three different principals in the last three years.

Bayersdorfer took over for Christine Zimmermann, who moved to the school last year after Catherine Bennett retired. Zimmermann was promoted to the newly created district-wide Director of Curriculum position earlier this year.

Donohue also said waiting until next year to find a permanent replacement will allow Lauren Schoen, the newly hired Superintendent who begins July 1, to have a part in the hiring process.

Before coming to Mahwah in this role, Bayersdorfer served as an elementary principal in other Bergen County districts and Superintendent in the River Edge and Franklin Lakes school districts. He did not respond to requests for comment.

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