Jason Rojas

Dear Neighbor,

I hope this email finds you well. Below, you'll find updates on district resources and news. Please feel free to reach out to my office if you have any questions or concerns.

The topics covered in this e-newsletter are as follows:

• Veterans Stan Down Event
• Automatic Admission Program for College
• This Week In Connecticut History
• Manchester Community Events and Information
• East Hartford Community Events and Information

Attention Connecticut high school students! Earning good grades may lead to automatic admission to several public and private colleges and universities through a new state initiative that makes applying to college easier.

Launched in 2022, the Connecticut Automatic Admission Program (CAAP) is available to all graduating seniors in the state who have at least:

• A 3.0 weighted GPA or
• A 2.75 unweighted GPA

With just one application, students are automatically admitted to 10 participating colleges and universities, and the program eliminates common barriers by waiving application fees, essays, and recommendation letters. CAAP is administered by the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system in partnership with the nonprofit organization Common App, which helps streamline the college application process for eligible students.
Participating colleges and universities include:

• Central Connecticut State University
• Eastern Connecticut State University
• Southern Connecticut State University
• Western Connecticut State University
• Albertus Magnus College
• Goodwin University
• Mitchell College
• University of Bridgeport
• University of Hartford
• University of New Haven

After students apply through the Common App, eligible applicants will receive acceptance letters notifying them of their admission and encouraging them to enroll in one of the participating schools. The process requires only one application form and has no application fees.

The application period for Connecticut high school seniors planning to start college in the 2026-2027 academic year is currently open and will remain so until May 1, 2026.

All high school students in Connecticut are encouraged to take advantage of this valuable opportunity. Click here for more details and application instructions.

On September 17, 1886 — the 24th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam — thousands of spectators and Civil War veterans gathered in Hartford to partake in the dedication of the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch in Bushnell Park. Hartford’s Memorial Arch was the first permanent triumphal arch memorial in the United States – preceding later such arches such as Washington Square (New York), Roosevelt Arch ( the north entrance to Yellowstone Park in Gardner, Montana), and the Pennsylvania State Memorial (Gettysburg), –  and honored all the men from that city who served or fell during the Civil War.

Standing 116 feet high, the striking brownstone monument features two intricate friezes depicting Civil War scenes and symbols representing the city of Hartford and the four branches of military service: an anchor for the Navy, crossed cannon for the Artillery, crossed sabers for the Cavalry, and crossed rifles for the Infantry. Midway up each tower are niches containing figural statues of a farmer, a blacksmith, a mason, a student, a carpenter, and — most strikingly — an African-American man breaking apart the chains of bondage. Two bronze plaques mounted at the base of the arch’s two towers read:

“In honor of the men of Hartford who served and in memory of those who fell on land and on sea in the War for the Union, their grateful townsmen have raised this Memorial. More than 4,000 men of Hartford bore arms in the National Cause, nearly 400 of whom died in the service.”

Today, the Memorial Arch stands as one of the most iconic pieces of architecture in the city, and is maintained by the Bushnell Park foundation, which occasionally opens the interior of the arch for public tours. After undergoing an extensive restoration in the 1980s, an additional bronze plaque was added to the base of the arch that specifically honored and acknowledged “Hartford’s one hundred and twenty-eight black soldiers who were not previously honored for their bravery and valor in the great Civil War.”

Further Reading

Julie Stagis, “Soldiers & Sailors Arch to be Rededicated,” Hartford Courant

Sally Taylor, “Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Arch,” C-SPAN featurette

“Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch, Hartford,” ctmonuments.net

https://www.easthartfordct.gov/residents
 
Town Newsletters
Pulse of East Hartford     
East Hartford Public Schools
East Hartford Works

Join your neighbors to clean up Broad Street and the surrounding areas! This is a busy commercial area with lots of foot and car traffic, so therefore lots of litter. We will be participating in the Connecticut River Conservancy's Source to Sea Cleanup as well as celebrating National Cleanup Day. Come spend some time outside giving back to your community!

Time: 9 am to 11 am – come at any point during the two hours
Check in: 261 Broad Street: Family Dollar Parking Lot
Provided: Gloves, trash pickers, buckets, safety vests, and water.
Bring: Sturdy shoes, hats, sunscreen, and weather-appropriate clothing

T-shirts will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Register Here

In 2019, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving established $100,000 Greater Together Community Funds for each of the 29 towns in the Foundation’s region, which includes the town of Manchester.  In 2021, the Foundation provided an additional $50,000 to each of the 29 community funds to support their grantmaking.  In December 2023, the Foundation provided another $20,000 to each of the 29 community funds to support their grantmaking. 
The purpose of the Greater Together Community Funds is to:

• support the community in taking ownership around the needs in their towns
• encourage broad and inclusive civic engagement and
• anchor the Hartford Foundation in each town.

Manchester has formed a committee to manage a participatory process to identify your town's needs and allocate community funds.

2025 - 2026 Grant Cycle

The Manchester Greater Together Community Fund is looking for more local projects to support with awards of up to $5,000 for the 2025-2026 grant cycle, which begins September 2 and ends on October 10.  The Manchester Community Fund welcomes proposals that will improve or enhance the quality of life of Manchester residents or otherwise contribute to solving a direct need of the Manchester community. Individual grant awards range from $250 to $5,000.
In order to be considered for grant funding, projects must benefit the residents of Manchester in an immediate, concrete way. Any nonprofit registered as a 501(c)(3) organization that serves the residents of Manchester is eligible to apply. Groups of town residents may also prepare an application in partnership with a registered 501(c)(3) or municipality that has agreed to serve as a fiscal sponsor for the proposed project.
Project applications and grant proposals will be accepted until 11:59 P.M. on October 10, 2025.
For more information and to submit proposals please click on the links below.  Questions and Project Budgets can be submitted to manchester@hfpgcommunityfunds.org .
2025-26 RFP
2025-26 Grant Application
2025-26 Project Budget Template

Runners Will Make Strides to Fight Food Insecurity

Registration for the 89th Manchester Road Race opened on September 1^st, and race organizers said that the thousands of runners who are expected to compete in it will all be making strides to alleviate hunger in Connecticut.

Dr. Tris Carta, President of the Manchester Road Race Committee, announced that food insecurity will be the primary charitable focus of this year’s road race, which will be held at 10 a.m. in Manchester on Thanksgiving Day (November 27, 2025).

According to Carta, the race committee voted to suspend in 2025 its practice of annually awarding grants from the event’s net proceeds to a number of diverse charities and nonprofits. Instead, those funds will be earmarked this year for two organizations that provide food to those in need, Connecticut Foodshare and Manchester Area Conference of Churches Charities.

Connecticut Foodshare is a food bank serving the people of Connecticut, and is a member of Feeding America’s nationwide network. It distributes healthy food through a network of more than 650 food pantries, community kitchens and meal programs and operates mobile food distribution centers across the state.

MACC Charities operates a “Community Kitchen’ serving lunches during the week and an emergency food pantry that distributes groceries.

“There is a pressing need at Connecticut’s food banks right now, and we’re hoping that our road race can make a substantial contribution to address it,” Carta said.

Carta also indicated that the committee has designated MACC Charities as the beneficiary of the road race’s annual Honors Club Program.  Each year, the race sets aside bibs for up to 120 runners who each pay $100, instead of the traditional entry fee. All of those funds are donated to a single designated charity, which this year will be MACC Charities.

Registration for the 4.737-mile Thanksgiving Day Run is available on-line at www.manchesterroadrace.com.

This year’s entry fee will remain $32 for runners who sign up on-line at www.manchesterroadrace.com prior to 11:59 pm EST on Sept 30.  The entry fee subsequently increases to $37 on October 1^st and to $42 on November 22.  

Registration for the race will close completely on November 25, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. EST. No entries will be accepted on the day of the race.

Runners will once again have the option to either pick up their bibs in person, or have them delivered.  The race committee has scheduled a number of times and dates prior to the race when bibs can be picked up in person at no additional cost.  Details about the schedule and locations of the in-person pickup dates, and the fee that will be charged for delivery, will be available at www.manchesterroadrace.com when registration opens on September 1^st.

Race officials are reminding runners that there will not be bib pickup on the morning of the race.

“We’ve been working on plans for this year’s race since last winter, and we believe it is going to be another world-class event,” Carta said. “We anticipate another exciting race with a large field, and we are urging everyone to register as soon as they possibly can.

Carta also said that race officials are once again offering a Virtual Manchester Road Race option for those who can’t attend the event in person.  Participants can download a GPS-enabled app to their smartphones and have their times recorded as they run the MRR course distance at any location in the world.

On-line registration for the virtual run also begins on Sept. 1^st and closes on Nov.25^th.  The registration fee is $30 and more information is available at www.manchesterroadrace.com.

Approximately 400 volunteers from the Manchester Road Race Committee organize the annual Thanksgiving Day Run, with support from the Town of Manchester. More details are available on the road race website.