Impasse in reaching contract for 2017

STAR JOURNAL REPORT

Midway through her third season as the Rhinelander High School girls head swimming coach, Lindsay Byrka has resigned.

Both Byrka and RHS activities director Brian Paulson confirmed the resignation, effective Wednesday, related to an impasse in her reaching a contract for this season.

Following her resignation, Paulson said a part-time assistant coach with the RHS girls swimming team, Brent Olson, and the middle school’s girls swimming coach, Marna Winnicki, would be handling the head coaching duties for RHS’s girls swimming team for the time being.

When reached by phone Thursday, Byrka said her resignation ultimately came down to her health and the need to have a full-time assistant available to help her because she couldn’t be present full-time. She noted she began this season without a contract in place.

Byrka’s full-time assistant on the girls team the past two seasons, Megan Cihla, had resigned prior to the start of the 2017 season.

Though Byrka’s resignation only applies to the girls team, she also has been RHS’s head boys swimming coach the past three seasons and said she doesn’t know at this point whether she will be staying on to coach the boys this winter.

Byrka said she reached out to the school administration about wanting to continue as a head coach, but didn’t get a response, giving her the impression the administration wants to “get rid of me.”

The district issued a statement saying it is ” now in the process of moving forward and securing a coach to continue to provide success for all swim teams at the high school.”