4 Candidates File For Manchester School Board Seats

MANCHESTER, NJ — Four candidates have filed petitions to run for the two seats on the Manchester Township Board of Education that are up for election in November. The deadline to file candidate petitions for the two, three-year terms was Monday.

Jacalyn "Jackie" Bermudez, who is currently serving as board president, is seeking reelection. She was appointed to the board in October 2009 to fill the unexpired term of Jane Stiers and then elected to the board in 2010.

Also filing petitions were Daniel R. Staples, Gayle Mount and Sarita Dodd.

Staples is the father of Manchester Township teacher Dan Staples, who is president of the Manchester Township Education Association. He is retired from a job in the private sector.

Mount was appointed to the board in 2017 to fill the unexpired term of Mary Walters, who resigned from the Manchester board to take a job with the New Jersey School Boards Association. She sought election to a full term in 2017 and ran again in 2018.

Dodd, who was the president of the school district's Parent Teacher Association for several years, also sought election in 2018 but was not successful.

Board member Patrick Barry, whose term expires Dec. 31, is not seeking reelection.

Note: This article has been updated to correct the identity of the Daniel Staples who is seeking election to the school board. Patch regrets the error.

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