The Webster City Community School District Board on Tuesday accepted the resignation of the incoming high school principal who was supposed to begin his contract on July 1.

Chris Aggen is serving as Perry School District’s associate principal/director of Learning Supports. He has held the position for two years, according to the media release that accompanied the announcement of his hiring in January.

On Tuesday, the WCCSD board agreed to pursue a new search for a principal.

Webster City Schools Superintendent Matt Berninghaus released the following statement regarding the situation:

“In January, we announced the hiring of Chris Aggen as our next high school principal, set to begin in the 2025-26 school year. Since that time, Mr. Aggen has continued to pursue other administrative positions, recently accepting an interview for a high school principal role with another district.

“This development resulted in a fair amount of uncertainty as to whether Mr. Aggen was committed to serving as principal of Webster City High School. As such, we looked to prioritize what is best for our school community’s long-term success.

“The School Board has accepted Mr. Aggen’s resignation. Our attention is now on identifying our next principal for WCHS. I am confident we will find a candidate who is excited to grow with our community and contribute meaningfully to our continued progress.

“If we are able to secure a candidate to start July 1, an interim principal will not be necessary. If we do need to appoint an interim, we will share that information with our community as soon as possible.”

In January, when his hiring was announced, Aggen said in a media release, “I am incredibly honored to have the opportunity to be the next principal of Webster City High School. I look forward to being part of the team at the high school while hitting the ground running building relationships with students, staff and families.”

Prior to working in Perry, Aggen served the Baltic South Dakota School District as a middle/high school principal, according to the media release. He completed his principal licensure program at the University of Sioux Falls in 2014. Prior to earning his Master’s in Educational Leadership, he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in K-12 Physical Education and 5-12 Health Education from Southwest Minnesota State University in 2011.

Current Principal Richard Hutchinson is retiring at the end of the school year.

Also during Tuesday’s school board meeting, the board also accepted the resignations of Emma Bertrand, group speech coach, and Bryce Bradley, assistant eighth-grade football coach.

Former Lynx Coach Bob Howard was hired as assistant varsity football coach.