Crisp white letters on an electric blue shirt said it all: “U CUT BUDGET, WE CUT CLASS.” But it wasn’t just a fashion statement for West High School students who showed up to the Monday, April 28, public hearing on Manchester’s proposed 2008-09 budget. Their presence was in support of their favorite programs and teachers, which may be cut from the Manchester School District’s budget.

It was a way to call attention to the loss of programs such as music, art, sports and performing arts that largely affects students’ lives, said West senior Craig Benton, 18, of Bedford. “Without these programs, we wouldn’t be who we are today,” Benton said of himself and his classmates.

There is one more senior class that has to go through West High School for the 2008-09 year before all Bedford students will be phased into the town’s new high school.

With Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta proposing a 2008- 09 school district budget of $140 million – about $13 million less than the school district’s request and $7 million less than what the district is operating on this year – next year’s seniors may not get the same education and extracurricular benefits that Benton got.

Benton told Manchester’s Board of Aldermen about his four-year experience at West, a large part of which was acting with the school’s drama club, the Theatre Knights.

“It was my backbone,” Benton said of the Knights, adding his experience will carry him through college in a performing arts program.

His grandfather, former Manchester school superintendent Eugene Ross, would be upset with the way Manchester schools are headed, Benton added. Concerned Manchester taxpayers, parents, voters and students of all ages donned school colors and carried signs into the Manchester Memorial School’s auditorium, spilling over into the school’s cafeteria and gymnasium. “We estimate that there was close to 2,000 people there,” said Manchester Fire Chief James Burkush.

The meeting started a little after 6 p.m. and lasted to about midnight, with more than 100 speakers addressing the Board of Aldermen and Mayor Frank Guinta on school budget cuts. Only a few spoke in favor of Guinta’s budget, and a few others spoke on different areas of the budget other than the school district.

Members of the Bedford School Board were among the crowd present as a reminder of Manchester’s obligation to fulfill the terms of the tuition contracts with several neighboring towns and to show concern about the potentially diminishing quality of education and staffing. Under Guinta’s $140 million proposal, eight assistant principals, several staff members from each school, and various co- and extracurricular programs will be removed from the 2008-09 school budget.

“I’m asking you to consider the children,” said Bedford School Board Chairman David Sacks at the hearing, after reminding aldermen and the mayor of their tuition agreement with Bedford, which obligates the Manchester School District to meet state standards in terms of class size, curriculum and enrichment activities.

Bedford signed a three-year contract with Manchester in January 2006 that would phase out Bedford students, with Bedford paying an additional $200 transition fee for each student.

Language within the agreement specifically states that Manchester must provide consistent quality of education throughout the length of the contract, said Sacks.

“If the proposed budget cut is realized, it will be virtually impossible for West High to comply with the terms of the agreement,” Sacks said. “We believe that this budget cut will deeply impact their ability to position themselves as best as possible for the college or career of their choice.”

When Bedford’s high school officially opened in August 2007, Bedford began pulling its high school students out of West High, leaving a void in this year’s enrollment and lost revenue in Manchester’s school budget. Sacks said Bedford gave plenty of notice that they would be pulling students out of Manchester schools.

Bedford resident Linda Englehart was also among the 100 or so people who spoke at the hearing, pointing out that many current juniors have selected their classes for senior year, meaning they would have to rework their schedules and, in some cases, begin from scratch.

“Manchester School District seniors should get to finish with curriculum change,” Linda Englehart said. “We urge you to seriously consider our thoughts today,” Sacks told the Board of Aldermen. “We have a near 90- year tradition as precedent. We are neighbors. I am asking you to consider the children and the future of this region as you contemplate drastically impacting their means to success (their education).”