Manchester High School Central is the oldest
public high school in the state of
New Hampshire. Located in the heart of
Manchester, New Hampshire, approximately 1,200 students attend
from communities such as
Hooksett and Manchester, and it formerly served
Candia. The name was changed from Manchester High School in 1922 when
Manchester West High School opened. Including Central, Manchester has a total of four public high schools, all a part of the
Manchester School District.
Its athletics teams are nicknamed the ''Little Green'' (after
Dartmouth's ''Big Green'') and the school colors are
green and
white. ''
Sports Illustrated'' named the school's athletic department as the best in the state of New Hampshire in 2005.
The school originally had crimson red as its school color, but
Concord High School had taken the color soon after. After the start of the 20th century, the two schools decided that the winner of a league championship would keep its colors; Concord won, and Manchester Central chose forest green as its new color.
Ronald Mailhot was named interim principal at the end of 2011, following the retirement of former principal John R. Rist, but returned as full-time principal in 2012. Mailhot later resigned in the middle of the 2013-2014 school year and was replaced by John Rist for his second stint as principal of Central. Rist retired at the end of the 2014 school year and was succeeded by John M. Vaccarezza. After Vaccarezza’s departure in 2021, Debora Roukey became the school’s first female principal.
Central High School's student newspaper ''The Little Green'' was commended by
Columbia Scholastic Press and featured in the Manchester Daily Express as well as the ''
New Hampshire Union Leader''.
In 2012, the New England Scholastic Press Association (NESPA) awarded its Highest Achievement award in Scholastic Editing and Publishing to the newspaper for the 2011-2012 school year.
History
In 2016 there were about 200 students from
Candia. That year Candia voters voted to change their high school from Manchester Central to
Pinkerton Academy, effective 2018. The votes were 1,090 in favor and 113 against.
Diversity at Central
Manchester High School Central has a diverse student population. Daily, Central's faculty teaches students from sixty different countries who speak thirty different languages.
New Hampshire Public Radio
New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR) is the National Public Radio member network serving the state of New Hampshire. NHPR is based in Concord and operates eight transmitters and six translators covering nearly the whole state, as well as portions of ...
was so intrigued by the wide array of student backgrounds at Central that it decided to compose a project entitled "Culture Lessons" in 2006. The project's objective was to dive into the core of "a school with a very diverse population in a very homogeneous state".
Notable alumni
*
Abraham Gosman
Abraham David Gosman (1928–2013) was an American real estate investor and nursing home magnate from Manchester, New Hampshire.
Early life
Gosman was born in 1928 in Manchester to a Jewish family. His parents were Russian immigrants. He was ...
, real estate investor and nursing home developer
*
Adam Sandler
Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1990 to 1995, before going on to star in numerous Hollywood films, those of whi ...
, actor and comedian
*
Bob Beattie, skiing coach and commentator
*
Bob Montana
Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip ''Archie''.
Early life
He was born in Stock ...
, creator of ''
Archie
Archie is a masculine given name, a diminutive of Archibald. It may refer to:
People Given name or nickname
* Archie Alexander (1888–1958), African-American mathematician, engineer and governor of the US Virgin Islands
* Archie Blake (mathemati ...
''
*
Carl A. Osberg,
United States Navy pilot and recipient of the
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...
*
Chip Kelly
Charles Edward Kelly (born November 25, 1963) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the UCLA Bruins. He came to prominence as the head coach of the Oregon Ducks from 2009 to 2012, whom he led to four consecutive BCS bowl game ...
,
NFL and
college football coach
*
Chris Pappas, member of the
US House of Representatives from
New Hampshire's 1st congressional district
New Hampshire's 1st congressional district covers parts of Southern New Hampshire and the eastern portion of the state. The district contains parts of Hillsborough, Rockingham, Merrimack, Grafton, and Belknap counties; and the entirety of ...
*
Elsie Eleanor Verity (1894 – 1971) “The First Lady of the motor trade” in Manchester.
*
Grace Metalious
Grace Metalious (September 8, 1924 – February 25, 1964) was an American author known for her novel '' Peyton Place'', one of the best-selling works in publishing history.
Early life
Marie Grace DeRepentigny was born into poverty and a broken ...
, author of ''
Peyton Place''
*
James Broderick
James Joseph Broderick III (March 7, 1927November 1, 1982) was an American actor. He is known for his role as Doug Lawrence in the television series ''Family'', which ran from 1976 to 1980, and he played a pivotal role in the 1975 film ''Dog Day ...
, actor and father of actor
Matthew Broderick
*
James O. Freedman, former president of
Dartmouth College
*
Jane Badler
Jane Badler (born December 31, 1953) is an American-Australian actress and singer. She is known for her role as Diana, the main antagonist in NBC's science fiction series '' V'' between 1983 and 1985. Badler also appeared in ABC's version of '' ...
, actress, star of the 1983 TV
miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. " Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries forma ...
''
V'' and its
sequels
*
Jason Fettig
Jason K. Fettig (born 1974/1975) is a United States Marine Corps colonel who is the music adviser to the President of the United States and the 28th director of the United States Marine Band.
Originally from Manchester, New Hampshire, Fettig w ...
, 28th director of the
United States Marine Band
*
L. A. "Skip" Bafalis, a member of the
United States House of Representatives from
Florida's 10th congressional district
Florida's 10th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Florida. It was reassigned in 2012, effective January 3, 2013, from the Gulf Coast to inland Central Florida. Before 2017, the district included parts of wes ...
from 1973 to 1983
*
Rene Gagnon,
United States Marine
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...
, one of the raisers of the American flag at
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...
*
Rogers Blood (1922–1944), a
The United States Marine Corps Reserve officer and posthumous recipient of the
Silver Star for his actions during
World War II
*
Ryan Day,
Ohio State head football coach
*
Toby Fox, video game developer and composer. Known for creating the video game
Undertale.
References
External links
Official website by Dan Brian, ''Manchester Oblique'', Sept. 15, 2011
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Educational institutions established in 1846
Central High School
Public high schools in New Hampshire
1846 establishments in New Hampshire