Bandemer Says Goodbye to MU
Alex Baker
Whitney Bandemer, former vice president for Human Resources and Strategic Initiatives, spent her last day working at Manchester University on Friday, Nov. 8, before moving on to Trine University at the Fort Wayne Campus to become vice president of Health Sciences.
Bandemer is looking forward to the next chapter in her life. “I am very excited,” she said. “This new role gives me the opportunity to utilize the skills I have developed in my previous job as executive vice president and chief operating officer at the Appalachia College of Pharmacy and all my different roles at Manchester.”
She has appreciated her years at Manchester, where she worked on both campuses. “Manchester really is a place where you can be yourself and I love that about it,” Bandemer said. Because of the people in this small town, Manchester will always hold a special place in Bandemer’s heart. “In my nearly nine years at Manchester I have experienced some of the most important milestones in my life—promotions, loss of family members, meeting and marrying my husband Chris, and most recently having my daughter, Alice,” Bandemer said.
“During all these events I was supported by a kind and caring work community, which I am so grateful for and will always cherish.” Diving deeper into those relationships, Bandemer would like to give a shout out to those that made her time here memorable.
“First and foremost, the people I have worked most closely with—Lisa Schall, Brandee Estes, Jenny Steele, Melinda Lantz, Anne Gregory, and Shane Thomson,” Bandemer said. “On hard days they are the reason I got out of the car.” Also, Bandemer feels gratitude toward two Manchester presidents. “I am grateful to Jo Young Switzer and Dave McFadden for the professional opportunities I have been given at Manchester,” she said.
While at Manchester, Bandemer has accomplished many things that have enabled the university to create more opportunities for students. “I am most proud of the work that the Human Resources team and I have done the last three years to make to Human Resources a customer-service oriented department and helping to start the pharmacy program,” Bandemer said.
The pharmacy program is one of the largest at Manchester University and many students outside Manchester go to the pharmacy school located in Fort Wayne. Bandemer had a vital role in the construction of the Fort Wayne campus. There was one more educational effort that she was glad to achieve during her time at Manchester.
“Developing the corporate education programs Manchester offers to SDI, STAR Financial and Wabash County was very rewarding to me,” she said. Education is very important to Bandemer and she hopes that she has positively influenced students to continue pursuing lifelong passions.