The Mallorcan School of Manacor, the cultural tool in Catalan that already has more than 3,000 students.

ManacorThere is little doubt that the Mallorcan School of Manacor (EMM) is, by its own merits and longstanding, a wonderful anomaly. A municipal institution in the form of a board of trustees that, this Wednesday and for the 53rd consecutive year, presented its training offer, which, in addition to Catalan, includes several cultural aspects that have strengthened the proposal for several years.

If we talk about numbers, everything suggests that this year will exceed the number of students from last year, which exceeded one thousand (1,036), distributed between the Catalan language courses (551), the bote dancing and traditional instruments courses (238), and those who attended the Mallorcan courses.

A number that reaches 3,131 if we also count those who attended the different workshops, cycles, and events organized by the School during the 2024-2025 academic years. Figures that represent a considerable increase compared to those recorded five years ago, which were 632.

Welcome Project

But if there's one thing the Mallorquín School is proud of, since its founding for Spanish speakers, and now, well into the 21st century, for newcomers, it's having been an educational and cultural bridge for teaching the spoken and written Catalan language.

Thus, this year, in addition to expanding its program with in-person and online classes for all levels (A2, B1, B2, C1, C2, and administrative language), the EMM will continue to adapt to the needs identified: from preparation for professional certificates to welcoming newcomers.

In this sense, "projects such as the Welcome Project, in collaboration with Social Services, are being maintained and promoted. This project will begin in November in Manacor and Portocristo, and will facilitate the first linguistic and social contact of newcomers," explains Margalida Rosselló, director of the EMM.

This means that, through Social Services, all those who have arrived in the municipality less than six months ago and want to integrate into the most basic daily tasks will be referred, from dealing with administrative procedures to being able to go to the doctor in Catalan to shopping (learning live on-site) at the Plaza de las Verduras.

Conversation workshops are also being offered again in collaboration with the Catalan Center of the Balearic Institute of Studies in Manacor, with a strong focus on oral and fluency skills, and Catalan courses for parents at Portocristo schools (CEIP Ses Comes, Mitjà de Mar). Rosselló recalls that "We always orient Catalan courses based on the needs we detect. It's a wonderful task that later benefits the educational system and community life."

Bot Dance

Folk dance courses include beginner, intermediate, and advanced groups, with varied schedules to facilitate participation. Specific courses are also maintained. According to the school's management, bote dancing is currently experiencing "a very strong moment, with high participation and interest," as is the learning of traditional instruments. Therefore, the Mallorquín School's offering includes workshops on xeremías, tamborino and piccolo, traditional percussion, and peasant sounds, both at beginner and intermediate levels.

Commitment

With this program, which will also include history courses and lectures, the Mallorquín Municipal School "reaffirms its commitment to promoting the language, culture, and traditions of Mallorca, and consolidates itself as a space for community, hospitality, and ongoing training at the service of the public," says Sebastià Llodrà, Policy Delegate.

"There is a Mallorquín School with more strength and more needs than ever, because enrollments keep rising, both for language and dance, history and instruments, language and culture."