Manchester residents, students and educators urge aldermen to restore school budget cuts at public hearing

A special public hearing of the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen on the proposed fiscal year 2026 municipal budget drew a long line of speakers—many of them students, teachers and school staff—pressing the board to restore about $9.5 million the mayor’s proposal would remove from the school district request.

The hearing, opened by the board to consider a package of proposed resolutions that included a $236,499,925 appropriation for the Manchester School District, attracted dozens of public comments. Speakers emphasized that the school board had submitted a tax‑cap‑compliant request of roughly $246 million and said the mayor’s proposed reduction would force class‑size increases, cuts to athletics and arts, and the introduction of fees for student bus rides.

Why it matters: Manchester is the state’s largest city school district and speakers repeatedly framed the dispute as a choice about investment in a diverse, high‑need student population. Commentators said cuts would disproportionately affect low‑income families, special‑education services and students who rely on school transportation and after‑school activities.

At the hearing, dozens of students from Manchester high schools, school staff and parents described concrete effects they expect if the board approves the mayor’s lower number. “When you invest in our education system, there isn’t an immediate return on investment,” Ward 11 resident…