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North Platte Public Schools to auction off Osgood Elementary
On Monday evening, the North Platte public school board approved the sale of Osgood Elementary, plus a no-increase contract for Supt. Todd Rhodes, and the 2025-26 district calendar.
After weeks of extensive discussions, the board made a pivotal decision regarding the future of the Osgood school building.
The board began discussing what to do with the empty building in September. In November, Rhodes said that across the district, 1,287 spots are available for students — 450 in 9-12 grades, 292 in 6-8 grades, and 545 in K-5 grades. He said Osgood has not had students in grades K-5 since 2020. After that, they ran a half-day preschool until this year, when it moved to Buffalo.
Simpson said the building costs $20,000 in electricity and heat annually plus an additional $10,000 for a custodian to go out every other week for upkeep. The district began leasing part of the building to Top Teir MMA and Boxing in October; Rhodes said the lease doesn’t begin to cover the $30,000 per year required to maintain the building.
Board member Angela Blaesi said many people have asked why English language learner students couldn’t be educated there. She said the district’s policy on inclusiveness — including students of different abilities in the regular educational setting as much as possible — is the reason they want to keep English language learners with the rest of the students.
Board member Matt Pederson said he received many calls from people with different ideas about how the building could be used. Vice-President Emily Garrick recused herself from the discussion and the vote because she is the co-owner of Top Teir MMA and Boxing. The vote was unanimous in favor of selling the building at an auction this spring. The district will contract with Commercial Investment Services to conduct the sale.