Coley O’Connell (LWW Teacher/Irish Fest), LWW Principal Dr. Ted Robbins, King Ryan Hayden, Queen Eileen Zheng, Assistant LWW Principal Dr. Jennifer Kileen, Brandon Lipke (LWW Teacher/Irish Fest)
Manhattan Irish Fest has announced the winners of the 2026 Michael J. McHugh Manhattan Irish Fest King & Queen Scholarship Winners. The fest royalty are both highly accomplished students at Lincoln Way West High School.
The 32nd Annual Manhattan Irish Fest was held on March 6th and 7th in Downtown Manhattan.
In 2018 the Manhattan Irish Fest Committee official announced that the King & Queen Scholarship would forever be named the “Michael J. McHugh Memorial King & Queen Scholarship.” Michael J. McHugh was a lifelong Manhattan area resident and business owner who dedicated himself to the community. He was a founding member of the IASCW in 1981 and one of the original founding organizers of the Manhattan Irish Fest. Mike gave back to his community in many ways and loved to talk about his Irish Heritage.
The 2025 Fest Committee announced the winners of the Michael J. McHugh Memorial King & Queen Scholarship. This year’s King and Queen are Ryan Hayden and Eileen Zheng, both of Manhattan and Lincoln-Way West High School. Each student received a $1000 scholarship toward the school of his/her choice. The Manhattan Irish Fest has awarded $40,000 in scholarships since 2004.
Eileen is a senior at Lincoln-Way West and the daughter of Xiu Liang Zheng & Minfang Jiang of Manhattan. She plans to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she will major in Chemical Engineering and Material Science.
Ryan is a senior at Lincoln-Way West and is the son of Tim and Shay Hayden of Manhattan. He plans on attending the University of Alabama, majoring in pre-med with a goal of becoming an Oncologist.