OneManchester

Juniors at MHS are getting the chance this week to do practice job interviews, with dozens of businesspeople and other volunteers from throughout the community asking the questions and providiing feedback.

Last week at MHS ended with a day of Senior Stories -- a graduation requirement that asks students to reflect on their strengths, moments of growth and powerful learning experiences while also displaying meaningful artifacts and sharing their post-secondary plans. For more photos and other news from MHS, check out the latest Red Hawk Update newsletter.

Third-graders from throughout the district were bused to MHS on Tuesday for an instrument demonstration concert led by MHS students. Instrumental instruction begins in fourth grade and here are the options:

Orchestra: Violin, viola, cello, bass

Band: Flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, baritone horn

There's no school next week, after which comes the sprint to the end of the academic year. Graduation is set for Wednesday June 10 (with a rain date of June 11) and the last day of class for everyone else is Thursday, June 18 (with an emergency early-release schedule for students that day).

Also:

• The Board of Education meets tonight (Thursday, April 9) at Lincoln Center starting at 7 p.m. and will include an update on STEM PK - 12. The March 23 meeting included a winter data update and a replay can be found here.

Detective Claire Hearn of the Manchester Police Department visited Mr. Dietch's Law and Order classes at MHS on Tuesday, discussing topics like securing crime scenes and evidence gathering procedures.

The kindergarten registration window for next school year is open. Parents/guardians of children whose fifth birthday falls on or before Sept. 1, 2026 may begin the registration process by visiting the registration page on the MPS website.

• If parents/guardians of children who turn five between Sept. 2 and Dec. 31 feel their child may be ready for kindergarten, they may request a kindergarten readiness screener for a possible placement in kindergarten by contacting the Deputy Superintendent at 860-647-3447. The kindergarten readiness screener will only be given in May and June.
• If you have any questions please contact the Manchester Public Schools Welcome Center at 860-645-6041 or email mfrison@mpspride.org.

Registration is open for a summer STEAM camp for students who will be entering Grades 1–6 in the fall. It's run by the Manchester Adult and Continuing Education Department and there's more information here.

Spring Sewing Series: Manchester Adult & Continuing Education will be hosting a Drop-In Sewing Series taught by professional seamstress, Ms Ashley Parker. Click here for details.

And Don't Forget Project Graduation:

• Yard Flocking is back: Three days for $25. Click here for instructions.
• Order your Class of '26 yard sign by clicking here.

WITH NO SCHOOL NEXT WEEK, we have an extra-long calendar for you below. The next OneManchester newsletter will be published on Thursday, April 23 -- which also is the date the Illing spring musical opens. "Xanadu Jr." is a fun, high-energy show set in the 1980s and featuring the world's first Roller Disco . We'll have more about the show in our next newsletter.

Thursday, April 9
6:15 - 7:45 p.m. -- Date Night Downtown:Ukulele for Beginners at Summit Studios, 421 Main St.
7 p.m. -- BoE meeting at Lincoln Center.

Friday, April 10
7:30 - 10:30 p.m -- Nightshift returns to Army & Navy Club, 1090 Main St.

Saturday, April 11
8 a.m. - 1 p.m. -- Household Hazardous Waste Collection at 321 Olcott St.
10 a.m. - 2 p.m. -- 2nd Saturday Open House at 903 Main St.
10 a.m. -- LTM’s Rising Stars workshops at Cheney Hall.
1 - 3 p.m. -- History Hike of Highland Park starting at the small parking lot on Spring St.

Monday, April 13
10:30 - 11:15 a.m. -- Bingo for Kids at Whiton Library.
3 - 4:45 p.m. -- CheckMates (chess for ages 7 -11) at Whiton Library.

Wednesday, April 15
2:30 - 3:15 p.m. -- All About Axolotls (for ages 5 -10) at Whiton Library.

Thursday, April 16
6 - 8:15 p.m -- 3rd Thursday Listening Room, monthly open-mic at WORK_SPACE, 903 Main St.

Saturday, April 18
1 - 2:30 p.m. -- Visiting Hollywood: The E. J. Holl Development, starting at 283 East Center St.
9:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. -- Find Your Force Women’s Doubles disc golf event at Wickham Park.
2 p.m. -- Once on this Island: ASL-interpreted performance at Cheney Hall.

Sunday, April 19
1 - 2:15 p.m. -- “The American Revolution as Seen in American History” at the Manchester History Center, 175 Pine St.

Tuesday, April 21
6 - 7:30 p.m. -- Youth Commission meeting at Town Hall.
7 p.m. -- FY27 Budget Adoption at Lincoln Center.

Wednesday, April 22
5:30 - 8 p.m. -- Strengthening Families Program at YSB, 63 Linden St.
5:30 - 6:30 p.m. -- Therapy Dogs 101 at WORK_Space, 903 Main St.

ALSO:

• CT State's 'Evening of Fine Dining' will take place on April 22. Click here for details.

• ‘Once on this Island - the musical’ runs on the weekends at Cheney Hall through April 26.

• The Illing spring musical is XANADU Jr. and will run April 23 - 25 at Bailey Auditorium.

• 'Rebuilding Together Manchester' will take place throughout the town on April 25. Click here to learn more.

• The Blue Angels are holding a bingo fundraiser at the Army & Navy Club on May 3 to help children in need. Click here for details.

• The Spruce Street Farmers Market is officially rebranding as the Eastside Farmers Market and will return for the season on June 3. Click here for details.

• The Manchester Landtrust’s semi-annual ‘Giant Tag Sale’ runs from June 5 - 13 at 330 Bush Hill Rd.

Further Down the Road

• The Off-Main Experience in Manchester kicks off at Purnell Place on June 18 and runs monthly in July, August and September. Click here for dates and times.

• Cruisin’ on Main Street is back for its 25th year on Aug. 2

• The Silk City Fest returns to Purnell Place on Aug. 22. Stay tuned for details.

Also:

• Ultimate Frisbee Clinic at Mt. Nebo on April 25.
• Color Dash: Color Run! at 448 Tolland Tpke. on May 9.
• Summer camps run from June 29 through August 7 and you find more info here.

Follow their Facebook or Instagram pages for more.

... Then you'll want to check out this video that reviews opportunities with the town's rec department.

Manchester Public Library posted on its Facebook page a sneak-peak video from inside the new main building, which is expected to open in the summer..

Former pro football player Shannon James is the new varsity football coach at Manchester High School -- and to read the letter announcing his appointment, click here.

And While on the Subject of Football:

• Manchester Knights Football & Cheer registration for fall 2026 will take place at Illing Middle School through Friday. Click here for details.
• Manchester Pop Warner Football and Cheer is also underway. For information, click here.

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Spring sports are in full bloom and photographer Paul Ofria has been keeping up, taking photos of Red Hawk baseball on Saturday and softball on Wednesday, with an in-between trip to Illing on Monday for baseball and softball games that were being played at the same time on adjacent fields. We have more photos on the OneManchester Sport Facebook page.

Wear your favorite sport team attire on April 23 for a benefit in honor of Jayden Srickland.

Also:

• You can support the Illing baseball team by making a purchase at their merch store or click this link for their popcorn fundraiser store. And you can follow the team all season on the Gamechanger App.
• Manchester Soccer Club has several spring programs to choose from and you can learn more and register here.
• Tylon Smith Jr.'s instructional basketball training for boys and girls runs on Wednesdays from April 1 through May 20 at Bowers School. Click here for details.
• Coerver CT East is offering a Spring Break soccer clinic at East Catholic from April 13-16. Click here for more info.
• U. S. TaeKwonDo has summer programs in June, July and August. Click here for info.

The New York Giants and National Football League honored MHS flag football coach Derrick Sheets Sr. as the coach of the week. The defending state champion Red Hawks are 1-0 so far this season and will play Rocky Hill on Saturday at Glastonbury High at 2 p.m. Sheets, who was surprised by the award, was joined by his players for a brief ceremony Wednesday afternoon before practice.

DON'T FORGET THE ANNEX: This is our spillover space to other newsletters, social media accounts and more, including the 'OneManchester Planner', which has even has more calendar listings for the months ahead. Plus we share a special flashback photo from Paul Ofria each week. To get to The Annex, click here.

• NOTE: OneManchester is compiled by the school district's communications office but is dependent on contributions from people and institutions throughout the town and school district. So if you have something that you think people would want to know about, please let us know. Photos, fliers, links, tips, whatever -- please share with Paul Ofria at pofria@mpspride.org.