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Yahoo
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Spillers announces run for mayor of Manchester
And then there were two. The number of people running for mayor of Manchester has doubled, with Ward 8 school board member Jessica Spillers filing papers Thursday, seeking the coveted corner office at City Hall — killing any shot Mayor Jay Ruais had of becoming the first sitting mayor to run for reelection unopposed since 1863. Spillers, a mother to three young children (Roxanne, 5, Quorra, 2, and Tucker, 6 months), wife, and social worker, said she is running for mayor because she wants Manchester to be 'a great place to live -– not just for my family, but for every family.' 'Our public schools deserve leadership that is actually willing to fight for the students and teachers to ensure adequate funding that helps students succeed at every level,' Spillers said. 'I'm tired of a government that doesn't listen to the people. The school board and district had resounding support from both business and the public in fully funding a tax cap compliant budget and in the land transfer for the new Beech Street elementary school. Instead, local politicians decided to put their egos before the welfare of the community, creating unnecessary barriers and cutting the school budget needlessly.' Spillers realizes she is considered by many to be an underdog in the mayoral race — a moniker she says doesn't concern her. She is in the second year of her first term on the Manchester school board, having defeated Mark Warden, 938-791, in the 2023 municipal election. 'Being the underdog is not new to me,' Spillers said. 'When I ran for school board in Ward 8 I ran against a well-known entity, and I think he kind of took that for granted that he would just win. I busted my butt in Ward 8. I went out and knocked on doors, I listened to the people, and I won by almost 200 votes. I'm not worried about it. I have faith in myself, I have faith in this community and in the people who are around me, who have said they're excited and they're ready to support me.' Spillers was greeted Thursday by a hallway full of supporters outside the City Clerk's Office after signing up to run, walking out to chants of, 'Yes for Jess' while accompanied by daughter Roxanne. Municipal elections in Manchester are nonpartisan, but the reality is races for major offices — particularly mayor — typically feature candidates backed by the two major parties. Ruais enjoys the support of conservatives, while Spillers's campaign already has the backing of city Democrats. Jim O'Connell, vice chairman of the Manchester school board, said he's excited to throw his support behind Spillers. 'She has demonstrated her commitment to the people of Manchester through her work on the Board of School Committee representing Ward 8,' O'Connell said. 'Her experience working on the issues that matter to every family in the city of Manchester make her the ideal person to lead the city to a more vibrant and inclusive future. 'She will be missed on the school board but I look forward to working with her to represent all the people of Manchester and to help our city grow to its full potential.' Manchester City Democrats Chair Joshua Query said Ruais 'has not delivered for this city.' 'It's time the people of Manchester have a leader that represents them and the everyday struggles of working families, and Jess is that person,' Query said. Spillers, who has a master's degree in social work with a concentration in child and family welfare from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and a bachelor's degree in social work from the University of New Hampshire, currently serves as a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program program specialist with the Department of Health and Human Services. Spillers has been critical of Ruais (who filed for reelection on Tuesday) over the budget for Manchester schools, especially so during a public hearing held by city aldermen in April on the mayor's proposed budget — which came in $9.5 million less than the district and school board requested. 'This is the same issue as what we had with phase one of the long-term facilities plan — our mayor had plenty of opportunities to express concern, to ask questions, and he didn't,' Spillers said during the meeting. 'In fact, in the board meeting where we approved the superintendent's budget, he voted in favor. And then later he comes along and proposes a budget that cuts that same budget by $9.5 million.' Spillers said at the time there's not much more she can do as a school board member at this point, 'other than advocate.' 'You're all one vote, and just because the mayor has proposed this budget doesn't mean that you have to agree to it,' Spillers said. 'You can negotiate and fight on behalf of our students and our educators. The aldermen are the checks and balances on the mayor's power in the city, and I expect you to do your job.' Spillers had launched a website announcing she would seek reelection to her Ward 8 school board seat, but had yet to file papers making her bid official. The window for candidates to file papers to run for office in the 2025 Manchester municipal election ends at 5 p.m. on Friday, July 25. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Manchester Alderman Tony Sapienza won't seek reelection
Manchester Ward 5 Alderman Tony Sapienza announced Tuesday night he will not seek reelection to the seat this fall. Tony Sapienza Tony Sapienza 'I want to thank the people, the residents of Ward 5,' Sapienza said. 'I've been in this seat for 10 years as of this week, and I want to thank the people for the opportunity, for allowing me to represent them, and I want them to know that I do not intend to be filing for reelection in the upcoming filing period. 'We do have a young man named Jason Bonilla who has stepped up and is running for the seat. He's a fine young man, and I sure would like to see some young people on this board.' Mayor Jay Ruais thanked Tony Sapienza for his service. 'These are tough jobs, as you know, often they are thankless jobs, and anybody that puts their name on the ballot deserves a great deal of respect,' Ruais said. 'I look forward to finishing this term,' Sapienza said. Jason Bonilla, a school board member from Ward 5, announced in April he will run for the Ward 5 alderman seat in a video posted on social media. Speaking in both Spanish and English, Bonilla said he's ready to move 'on to the next chapter.' 'I'm running for alderman in Ward 5 to support all of our city departments, including our public schools, and to strengthen our businesses, especially our local ones,' Bonilla said. 'I will fight to keep our streets and parks clean and safe, to ensure our sidewalks are accessible and our roads are well-maintained, and work with law enforcement to remove fentanyl and opioids from our streets.' Bonilla said he is also committed to tackling the housing crisis, ensuring affordable options and reducing homelessness. 'I will do this by collaborating with local organizations and city departments, because no one in our community should be forgotten,' Bonilla said. Bonilla was appointed to the Board of School Committee in 2021, after Jeremy Dobson resigned his seat prior to moving out of the city. Bonilla was elected to the school board in 2023. Bonilla, a Salvadoran American, worked with AmeriCorps for two years in the Boston and Washington, D.C., public schools 'showing black and brown youth that we existed, that we were out here ready to advocate for them, to listen to them, and to push to them to follow their dreams.' Bonilla landed a career as a recruiter for City Year in Manchester, going from 'squeegeeing throw-up at Forest Hills' in Boston to recruiting young people of color across the region to serve as peer mentors in the Queen City. Bonilla was nominated for the Ward 5 school board seat by Tony Sapienza.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Manchester schools 'Wheel of Power' packet still stirring strong emotions
Manchester residents and school officials weighed in publicly this week for the first time since a packet on microaggressions and a 'Wheel of Power and Privilege' shared with some students elicited strong reactions across the city. The May 12 Board of School Committee meeting was the first since word of the packet spread late last month. Several speakers expressed concerns with the materials during the public comment portion of the session, while others — including some board members — spoke on the importance of recognizing diversity in the Queen City. 'When our district started to become more diverse, it was a challenge in schools, and I witnessed firsthand some of the prejudice against students that might speak a different language,' said Bob Baines, who is a former mayor, educator and current school board member. 'At West High School, before I got there, French was the dominant language that people spoke in their homes. English was the second language. I had a teacher one time in class tell a student to go back to Puerto Rico, where he belonged, because he was from Puerto Rico. 'We have to create an understanding of where people come from, that's how you create a community. Manchester is becoming a minority majority school district.' Eighth graders in a class at Henry J. McLaughlin Middle School brought home a packet Thursday, April 24, titled 'Cultural Fluency 2.0: Microaggressions.' The packet was distributed in connection with a unit on the Holocaust. School officials said the packet contained some materials intended only for staff development. Microaggressions are defined by Merriam-Webster as 'a comment or action that subtly and often unconsciously or unintentionally expresses a prejudiced attitude toward a member of a marginalized group (such as a racial minority).' In response to concerns aired by some parents, the district issued a statement saying they understand the topic can 'create reactions and conversations within our classrooms.' 'In this isolated incident, students were asked to complete an anonymous self-reflection form to explore their understanding of self to text within the unit,' the statement read. 'Unfortunately, materials intended only for staff professional development were used for this anonymous student self-reflection.' On Friday, April 25, Amadou Hamady — executive director of Student Engagement, Outcomes and Success for the Manchester School District — sent staff an email regarding Cultural Fluency training PowerPoint slides asking them to 'refrain from sharing any training materials, especially presentation slides, surveys, facilitator guides, or discussion content with students or external parties.' At Monday's meeting, Alderman Crissy Kantor said the packet is a divisive element in a city home to 'so much beautiful diversity.' 'When I was 10, 11, 12, I was one of the most brown kids in school, and now there's even more colors, more cultures and everything,' Kantor said. 'So to push this divide — and it is a divide, it's a complete divide — we're just dividing our children up and making them feel bad about themselves.' Manchester resident Camille Craffey called the 'Wheel of Power and Privilege' a 'very divisive piece of paper.' 'Wheel of Power and Privilege,' list cultural identifiers — such as White, middle-class or citizen — and the degree of power and privilege associated with each. It listed categories including skin color, sexuality, ability, citizenship, neurodiversity, body size, housing, wealth, and gender identity (options there were trans non-binary, female identified, male identified). 'There's even a portion in this packet that says, if you say you don't see color, then you are expressing a microaggression,' Craffey said. 'Is that not where we want to be? Is that not part of Dr Martin Luther King's message, to judge someone by the content of their character and not the color of their skin?' Manchester resident Callie Rojas said the Google definition of the Wheel of Power is 'a visual tool illustrating how different social identities can be associated with varying degrees of power and privilege within a society.' 'So if we left segregation in the past, then why are we telling individuals that they are limited?' Rojas said. 'My father is the first of his 10 siblings who came to America from Colombia. He is proud to be an American and blessed to have achieved the American dream. He worked hard his whole life and has now retired from a company that he has worked for for over 25 years. He has college degrees, certificates and a pension. According to this wheel standard, he should be large, homeless, poor, with an elementary education. This is blatant racism.' School board Vice Chairman Jim O'Connell said he thinks people are looking at something and claiming that it's creating division, not recognizing diversity, when 'actually it's doing exactly the opposite.' 'I think it's very important that we as a district recognize that we do have a diverse population,' O'Connell said. 'It is important that our students learn to live in the society that we live in today, and we'd be doing a disservice if we were not helping them to understand the world that they're living in.'
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bonilla to run for Manchester Ward 5 alderman; Ruais raises more than $400K
The calendar flipping from March to April means municipal elections in Manchester brought two more announcements on the local political landscape this week. Jason Bonilla, school board member from Ward 5, announced he will run for alderman this year, while Mayor Jay Ruais announced his reelection campaign has pulled in an impressive financial haul in just a few weeks. Bonilla announced his candidacy for the Ward 5 alderman seat this week in a video posted on social media. Speaking in both Spanish and English, Bonilla said he's ready to move 'on to the next chapter.' 'I'm running for alderman in Ward 5 to support all of our city departments, including our public schools, and to strengthen our businesses, especially our local ones,' Bonilla said. 'I will fight to keep our streets and parks clean and safe, to ensure our sidewalks are accessible and our roads are well maintained, and work with law enforcement to remove fentanyl and opioids from our streets.' Bonilla said he is also committed to tackling the housing crisis, ensuring affordable options and reducing homelessness. 'I will do this by collaborating with local organizations and city departments, because no one in our community should be forgotten,' Bonilla said. Bonilla was appointed to the Board of School Committee in 2021, after Jeremy Dobson resigned his seat prior to moving out of the city. Bonilla was elected to the school board in 2023. Bonilla, a Salvadoran American, worked with AmeriCorps for two years in the Boston and Washington, D.C., public schools 'showing black and brown youth that we existed, that we were out here ready to advocate for them, to listen to them, and to push to them to follow their dreams.' Bonilla landed a career as a recruiter for City Year in Manchester, going from 'squeegeeing throw-up at Forest Hills' in Boston to recruiting young people of color across the region to serve as peer mentors in the Queen City. Bonilla was nominated for the Ward 5 school board seat by current Ward 5 Alderman Tony Sapienza. Attempts to reach Sapienza for comment on whether he intends to seek reelection this fall were unsuccessful. Also this week, Ruais's campaign said nine weeks after formally launching his reelection bid, the incumbent mayor has raised more than $400,000, with more than $350,000 cash on hand. Campaign officials said Ruais has already knocked on more than 250 doors, and placed more than 25 yard signs. 'I am humbled by the continued outpouring of support we have received since launching our reelection campaign,' Ruais said. 'We have always campaigned like we are 10 points behind, and will take nothing for granted as we ask the people of Manchester to place their trust in me to lead our beloved city for another two years.' pfeely@
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Manchester school board sends $246 million budget to aldermen for approval
Feb. 23—Manchester school board members have voted to recommend the district's proposed $246 million Fiscal Year 2026 budget proposal be sent to aldermen for approval. The vote followed a public hearing Thursday night at West High School on the budget that failed to entice a single member of the public to speak in favor or against the proposal. Also recommended for approval was the school district's 2026 School Food and Nutrition Budget of $6.3 million and the 2025 Capital Improvements Projects (CIP) plan of $6.6 million. According to Superintendent of Schools Jennifer Chmiel, the budget supports 11,865 Manchester School District students, as well as services at charter and parochial schools. It also supports several areas of student success, including educational programming, hiring and retention, improved measures of college and career readiness, improved graduation rates and the start of priority one facilities projects. "On behalf of the district, I would like to thank the Board of School Committee for approving our tax-cap compliant budget proposal," Chmiel said Friday. "I have the responsibility of preparing a responsible, tax cap-compliant budget that funds our priorities and continues to meet the needs of our students. We remain one of the lowest-funded districts in the state, thousands below the average in per-pupil spending. This forces us to be diligent, thoughtful and creative in seeking efficiencies. Parameters of tax cap "We worked hard in developing this budget to ensure we are meeting the needs of students while working within the parameters of the tax cap." The school budget proposal contains $112.1 million in salaries (a $10.7 million increase over last year), $11.3 million in transportation costs (a $3.7 million decrease from last year due to the transition to in-house home-to-school busing), $11.7 million in debt service and $9.7 million to cover a $320,000 increase in costs for city services, including a 3% increase in costs for the Aramark custodial services contract and 5% increase for school resource officers from Manchester Police. The $6.6 million in CIP projects includes $300,000 for playground replacement, $1.2 million for the purchase of 11 buses and $250,000 for information technology network infrastructure costs. Manchester operates under a cap on property taxes established by a voter-approved amendment to the city charter. Generally referred to as a tax cap, the provision limits the total amount of money raised from property taxes, rather than the tax rate itself. Before the vote City and school budgets for the next fiscal year can increase by 4.27%. Prior to Thursday's vote, school board member Leslie Want raised the idea of sending to aldermen both a tax-cap compliant budget and a so-called "needs" budget, listing what the district would need to adequately deliver services to students, something administrators did in prior years. "In the past, we've always presented a needs budget," Want said. "We didn't do that last year, and we're not doing that again this year. I'm only asking because, last night, in a committee meeting, it was brought to the Student Conduct Committee's attention that we have a school that's unable to provide all the needs for all the students because they don't have full-time personnel to deal with those needs. "I mean, I know that the district's doing its best, but I just want to say that I'm disappointed that we don't have more to offer our kids, because I do believe that Manchester has some of the highest needs in the state." "Highest diversity, highest level of need," confirmed Chmiel. Mayor's comments Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais reminded board members of the compensation study done on salaries of employees on the city side — which concluded raises are due for Manchester to retain and recruit employees — and the importance of staying within the tax cap. "I'd be very careful characterizing this as a political will conversation — there are very real fiscal realities that we face," Ruais said. "I wouldn't characterize it in a political sense, more just the reality of budgeting and the global view that we all have to have when we're putting forward budgets." pfeely@
