The grand opening was held May 15.  Because our school was filled to capacity it was decided that the vestibule of the auditorium would be the best spot available.  Credit must be given to Bruce Dodson '64, who designed and built the cabinets to look like they were part of the original Halleck Hall building finished in 1934.  Bruce also designed the lighting system which has made the entire area "pop."  Kudos also to the design team from KYK Marketing who were responsible for the beautiful murals on the east and west walls.

Please visit us when you can.  You'll burst with Crimson pride.

HALL OF FAME Inducted 10 at the University Club on April 23

Honorees are:  David F. Archer '53, a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology and also a professor at the Jones Institute of Reproductive Medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical in Norfolk; Diana Donsky '60.  Multi-lingual, she came back to her alma mater and taught English, German and even a little Yiddish during her tenure from 1964 to 1993; Jackie Elston-Carter '97 was voted Kentucky's Softball Player of the Year in 1997 after leading the Lady Crimsons to the State Championship; Bill Faris '68, a successful businessman who founded a variety of healthcare-related companies, beginning with Employee Benefits Management in 1981; Buz Frank '68, who played on the 1966 State Champion football team and now does play-by-play for Old Goat Radio.  He has attended every Old Rivalry game since 1956; Mike McDaniel '64 is the author of STAND UP AND CHEER, THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF DU PONT MANUAL HIGH SCHOOL, and has served as alumni director since 2003; Morgan McGarvey '98 currently serves as the state senator from the 19th District and was formerly assistant attorney general for Kentucky; Dennis Robinson, retiring Counselor from YPAS, has served Jefferson County's students as teacher, band director and mentor for 30 years; David Wright '81 was co-founder of Old Goat Radio along with his father John.  He does color commentary for all football and basketball broadcasts.

     When you Name Your Seat an engraved nameplate will be placed on an audience seat to commemorate your donation.  You can honor a YPAS/Manual student or alumni; pay tribute to a special teacher, staff member or administrator; memorialize a friend; or leave a message of encouragement.
     The YPAS building will be undergoing a significant renovation during the summer of 2016.  Meanwhile faculty, alumni, students, parents and administrators prepare for the 40th anniversary of the school in 2017-18.  The Name Your Seat Campaign is a great opportunity to get involved and leave a lasting legacy in the Main Stage Theater.  Funds raised will be used to establish an ongoing fund to maintain and purchase equipment and technology.  For more information please visit The Producers website at producers.ypas.org, or for a pdf copy of the nameplate request form click here.

     The Crimson Mission, Inc. is an independent, non-profit organization that has been established to raise contributions to provide financial assistance to duPont Manual High School and the Youth Performing Arts School (YPAS) in Louisville, KY. Incorporated in 2015, the Crimson Mission, Inc.’s sole purpose is to raise funds and provide a third source of income beyond state and federal funding.
     As you know, a duPont Manual education is a unique education. Whether you, your children or friends attended Manual, you understand the “duPont difference.” From boxers, United States Senators and Mayors to astronauts, Olympic gold medalists and Broadway performers - you name it, duPont Manual has produced it. Consistently ranked a top public high school in Kentucky and one of Newsweek’s “America’s Top Schools,” duPont Manual High School has been exceeding expectations and producing top talent for over 120 years.
     The students at duPont Manual are not only gifted academically, they are gifted in other specialized areas as well — math, science and technology, performing arts, journalism and communication, visual arts and much more! Manual can proudly say that they are one of the most diverse student bodies in the City of Louisville, and in turn, creates worldly-minded students that are leading and working across the globe.
     Founded in 2015, the Crimson Mission is a private, non-profit organization whose mission is to engage the vast duPont Manual Family by accepting contributions from alumni, community partners, parents, families and friends of duPont Manual High School to fund individual student needs and large-scale projects to enhance the duPont Manual education. Just imagine what the amazing students and staff at Manual could achieve with additional tools and resources! We ask every member of the duPont Manual Family to join us in our mission.
     You’ve experienced the “duPont difference,” and now we need your help to build the Crimson Mission Inc. Your tax-deductible donation today will support the Mission and our goal of honoring the past, empowering the present and ensuring the future of duPont Manual High School!   For more information and to donate, please visit the site here on the school's website.

DID YOU KNOW ...?  The school's website has a great interface for designing and ordering Manual-themed items, from hats, sweats, hoodies and more.  Check it out at http://www.manualalumni.org.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT CLASS REUNION SITES:

We are seeing an increasing volume of solicitations for class-reunion sites. A new one seems to surface every month. Most of these are commercial at some level and either solicit your personal information for marketing purposes or ask for a membership fee before permitting access to any significant amount of content from other users. They also consist solely of content that you provide, in some cases only after you have paid them to let you provide it. The duPont Manual Alumni Association does not subscribe to or endorse any of these enterprises. This site, www.manualalumni.org, is the only official site recognized and supported by the school. We will continue to provide you with this free resource to connect with your classmates, organize and publicize your reunions, celebrate your accomplishments and publish your news. Just remember to keep us informed and we will keep you all in touch ... for free!

Some of these websites sell Manual-themed shirts, caps etc.  Be aware that any purchase made through these for-profit sites DOES NOT profit the Manual PTSA.  Please remember to purchase any Manual items directly from the school or PTSA.

We do recognize that Facebook can provide a convenient resource for individual groups and classes to post and publicize reunions and events, and we do not discourage its use, but we do not have the resources to maintain Facebook postings in addition to this site. We will continue to publish any Facebook links supplied to us as part of our service to facilitate reunions and meetings.

We've had many requests for copies of Stand Up and Cheer, the Official History of du Pont Manual High School by Mike McDaniel.  The original press run in 2005 was 2,500 copies, all of which were sold in less than a year.  To make it feasible, even at a break-even point, 750 copies would have to be pre-ordered at $39.95 per copy plus $5 shipping and handling.  Proceeds would benefit the alumni association.  If you would be interested in purchasing a copy for yourself or a relative, please call the Alumni Office at 502-485-8023 and leave your information on the answering machine.

Alumni Dues are now due, still only $10/year.  Help us defray the costs of running the alumni office and providing its many services.
To join, please send a check payable to the Alumni Association (address above) and provide your contact information and graduating year.

An endowed scholarship has been set up at Murray State University in honor of Manual Alumna Shelby Theiss. In this way Shelby’s memory can live on for years to come, and that memory can be shared with other youth who can learn from her beautiful example. Qualifying awardees must be from a Jefferson County High School, maintain a 3.2 GPA, and attend the School of Business.   More information is available here.

A New Boosters group is now forming!:
A CMA booster organization is in the process of being formed for parent and alumni supporters of duPont Manual's Communication/Media Arts program.  Anyone who would like to be on the email distribution list for information about the CMA boosters and to find out about our upcoming events can send an email to:  cmaboosters+subscribe@googlegroups.com

1964-1965 Concert Band Recording

... has been shared with us.  Click here for more information and the recording.

ROBERT B. GRIFFITH EDUCATION AWARD

The University of Louisville School of Music Alumni Council has created an award for a graduate of U of L in Music Education.  Named for the late Robert B. Griffith, this award will recognize someone who has excelled as a music teacher in kindergarten through high school.  Mr. Griffith was the band and orchestra director at Manual from 1945 to 1961.  In 1961 he was named head of U of L's music education division and he remained a professor at the university until 1978.  He was a composer of over 75 published marches, including "The Courier-Journal March" written in 1972.  Every first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs his ballad arrangement of "My Old Kentucky Home," written in 1962, is played prior to the running of the Kentucky Derby.  That same year Griffith wrote "Fight U of L," the official school song at all U of L sporting events.

If you are interested in making a contribution, please mail it to:  Tedi Vaughn, Director of Development, U of L School of Music, Louisville, KY 40292, and mention "Griffith Education Award" in the Memo line of your check.  Thanks for this information to Quentin Sharpenstein, Class of 1961, President of the U of L School of Music Alumni Council.

URGENT APPEAL TO ALL ALUMNI!
We need your help to assist in upgrading Manual Stadium.