Latest Manchester Sculpture Project Piece Honors Education Icon

MANCHESTER, CT — The second statue of the Manchester Sculpture Project is now in place.

Three years of fundraising came to fruition on Sept. 14 when a life-size bronze statue of visionary educator and innovator Elisabeth M. Bennet, was unveiled and dedicated on the lawn of Bennet Academy at 1151 Main St.

Bennet was born in Danbury in 1881 and came to Manchester in 1909 as a supervisor of teachers at the East School, located at School and Main streets.

During her 42 year career in the Manchester school system, she held a series of positions of increasing responsibility and is most remembered for her role in making sure that all 900 students and teachers escaped from a fire at the East School in 1913. The blaze burned the wooden structure to the ground in less than one hour.

Bennet is also credited for many education firsts, including the use of audio visual technology as a teaching aide and establishing the first school library in Manchester.

The Sculpture Project is a committee of 13 under the fiscal stewardship of the Manchester Historical Society. It raised about $125,000 for the statue of Bennet from donors both small. Grants include the Rockville Bank Community Foundation; the Mr. and Mrs. William Foulds Family Foundation, Bank of America; the Town of Manchester Arts & Culture Grant; and a Cruisin' on Main Street Mini Grant.

Sculpture Project committee member, Lynn Sottile, extended a "heartfelt thanks to the Manchester community for embracing this project and helping us reach our goals"

The statue of Elisabeth was sculpted by artist Michael Keropian, who lived in Manchester as a youth and now resides in Carmel, NY.

Keropian also sculpted the first statue in the Sculpture Project series, that of legendary Manchester sports figure and Manchester Road Race Legend Joe McCluskey, located on the corner of Highland and Wyllys Streets in the Charter Oak Greenway parklet opposite Highland Park Market.