The Board of Education meeting room was full of people Dec. 17 such as Seedling Mile parents of students, current students, teachers, and people who had attended the school. They urged the Board of Education to keep the school open, (Carol Bryant, Central Nebraska Today)
GRAND ISLAND – Five people from the community spoke at the Dec. 17 Grand Island Public Schools Board of Education meeting to support keeping the school open.
Jeremy Fanta of 4314 Stoneridge Path said he has a daughter in fifth grade at the school. He said he plans to opt her into the Northwest Public Schools.
Amy Penny is a second-grade teacher at Seedling Mile Elementary School.
“We are a hidden gem,” Penny said about Seedling Mile. She compared the school to being the District 1-R School that Northwest Public Schools has. Penny said she fully supports small schools.
“I know this is a big decision,” she said. She urged the Board of Education to keep the school open.
Jane Richardson, 47 Kuester Lake, is a Hall County Commissioner for District 5, which includes the Seedling Mile Elementary School attendance area.
“I urge you to please listen to constituents,” she said.
She noted that it has been common for Seedling Mile Elementary School teachers to work at the school for 25 to 30 years. She said if the school district is concerned about finances, it should sell the former Principal Financial Group building.
Jim Jeffries, 40 Kuester Lake, attended Seedling Mile Elementary School. Jeffries, who is retired, was a long-time teacher at Grand Island Senior High School.
“I know the importance of small classes,” he said.
“I’m in favor of keeping the school open,” he said.
Bill Jeffries, 55 Kuester Lake, said that he and his siblings (Richardson and Jim Jeffries) attended Seedling Mile Elementary School.
Jeffries asked Board of Education members whether they had gone door to door in the Seedling Mile attendance area to talk to constituents.
Jeffries said that his father was on the Seedling Mile Board of Education a long time ago. At that time, the school was known as District 74. Jeffries said that his father would have supported using common sense as the tool in making a decision about the school’s future. Jeffries asked the Board to study the issue of keeping the school open for a longer period of time. He described making a decision now as a “knee jerk reaction.”
Superintendent Matt Fisher then addressed the Board of Education about the school. He noted that there are a lot of good things about Seedling Mile Elementary School, including the physical condition of the building and a great staff.
He said that there were no negative factors about the school that were entering into the decision-making process.
He outlined reasons for closing the school, such as financial efficiency. He described a teacher shortage for elementary teachers.
Fisher said that Grand Island’s housing is growing in the Prairie Commons area southwest of Grand Island and in the Good Life District, where 2,000 housing units are being planned. He said that the district will likely have to look at adding schools in those geographic areas. He said that there is not housing growth in the Seedling Mile attendance area.
Board member Lisa Albers said consideration would be given to serving students and teachers for future planning if the school closed.
Board member John Hawley wondered whether the school district should look at changing boundaries for school attendance areas because of the Seedling Mile Elementary School situation.
Board member Eric Garcia Mendez thanked the people who had come to speak at the meeting.
Board member Josh Sikes asked Fisher to talk about the teacher shortage in the state. Fisher said that last year, there was a shortage of approximately 1,000 students in the state. More teachers are retiring than there are college students entering teacher education programs.
Ironically, Fisher mentioned that he attended a one-unit school.
Board member Lindsey Jurgens thanked those who had attended the meeting.
“So much thought has gone into this,” she said.
At that point, Hawley made a motion to close Seedling Mile for the 2025-26 school year and to have the Seedling Mile attendance area become part of the Dodge Elementary School attendance area. Albers seconded the motion. The motion passed 8-0, with Board member Dave Hulinsky absent from the meeting.
For the Grand Island Public Schools Board of Education, the district is separated into three wards. Seedling Mile Elementary School is in Ward C. The three Board of Education members who represent Ward C are Josh Hawley, Carlos Barcenas, and Eric Garcia-Mendez.
