School committee keeps traditional graduation schedule; staff outlines draft fact sheet, device shortfalls and snow-day plans

The Manchester School Committee on Feb. 10 accepted staff recommendations to keep the district’s traditional graduation schedule at the SNHU Arena after staff said arena operations would not support a condensed timetable.

The decision came during a staff update led by district staff member Yaron Tolan, who presented two items the district is circulating for feedback: a draft “district fast facts” sheet and proposed changes tied to graduation logistics. Tolan said the district and assistant superintendents Doherty and Ransdell had drafted alternate schedules to start ceremonies later but that SNHU Arena staff recommended keeping the existing blocks because a tighter turnaround would not allow for band setups, podium changes, staff staging and clean-up.

Tolan said the recommended times for this year remain: the MST ceremony at 8 a.m., Central at 10 a.m., West at 2 p.m. and Memorial at 5:30 p.m. He told the committee the arena charges the district neither for facility use nor day-of operations staff, and that the arena’s operational expertise guided the…