It's Official: Oldaker New Bridgeport Middle Principal
By Jeff Toquinto on January 20, 2023
What was expected to become official became official Tuesday evening at the meeting of the Harrison County Board of Education. During the evening session, the elected members of the BOE approved the personnel recommendations submitted to them by Superintendent Dora Stutler.
Among those recommendations was for a new principal at Bridgeport Middle School. Since that vote, BMS officially has a new principal in 
Gary Oldaker.
Gary Oldaker.
“It’s been busy,” said Oldaker on Wednesday, his first day with the interim tag removed.
If the same sounds familiar to those involved with the school, it should. Oldaker has served as the assistant principal for the last five years under former principal David Mazza.
The position became open when Mazza applied for the assistant principal and athletic director post at Liberty High School and started Jan. 3 after serving as an assistant principal for eight years and as the principal for six.
Oldaker is looking forward to the challenges of leading the school located on Johnson Avenue. And he said he is committed to doing just that.
“I certainly wouldn’t have applied if I wasn’t 100 percent dedicated to this, and certainly I am,” said Oldaker. “Before applying, the reservations in my thought process involved it being later in my career and I thought about the pressure that could come.
“It boiled down to being in a great school and a great community,” he continued. “After contemplating the position, and realizing so many good things here, I knew I wanted to move into the position.”
One of Oldaker’s first tasks will be finding his own replacement as assistant principal. He said he believed the job was posted this week and the goal is to have the post filled Feb. 8 after the posting, the interview process, and going through the steps at the Harrison County Board of Education. As for other things, he said most things will be status quo for the rest of the year.
“Anybody that takes a role such as this, they want their own flair and some changes, but it’s hard in the middle of the year. It would be hard to set new goals objectively 23 weeks into the year,” he said. “That is something I look to introduce during the next school year.”
Oldaker began his time at Bridgeport Middle School in August of 2017 after he was recommended for the vice principal position and the recommendation was accepted by the BOE. Oldaker is going on 30 years of serving Harrison County in the education arena.
He began his career at Washington Irving teaching math, including the final year it was a high school. After that, he taught math for several years at Lincoln High School.
Following his time teaching math, Oldaker began assuming an administration role at two schools in Harrison County prior to arriving at BMS. He served as principal at Washington Irving Middle School, and then as an assistant principal at Lincoln High School.
Prior to his arrival at BMS in 2017, he held a position in another county. He was the Doddridge County Schools director of curriculum, instruction, and federal programs.
Editor's Note: Gary Oldaker is shown at his desk getting things in order Thursday.
