WAUSA – Wausa Public Schools and Osmond Community Schools could potentially add basketball to their cooperative agreement.
Board of Education members and administration from both Wausa and Osmond met on Jan. 31 in Wausa for a joint committee meeting to discuss the school districts’ cooperative agreement that will start in the 2024-25 academic year. No action was taken on any topic.
Osmond school board president Mark Moes updated Wausa on where Osmond was in terms of working with Randolph Public Schools, noting the Randolph school board recently voted 6-0 to terminate the basketball cooperative agreement with Osmond.
Wausa school board president Mike Kumm asked whether Osmond had any other cooperative agreement in place with Randolph.
Osmond Superintendent Skip Bremer noted the school district’s long-term partnership involving future planning was with Wausa.
Osmond school board member Tyler Gansebom said the school district is honoring its commitment to Wausa, and wanted to make sure to inform Wausa that if other schools ask to work with Osmond, Osmond would check with Wausa first and tell other schools it will honor the commitment to Wausa first.
Moes later brought up the potential for Wausa and Osmond to add basketball to their cooperative agreement in the future, both in high school, as well as for junior high boys and girls.
Gansebom noted Wausa is the first school district Osmond wanted to ask about this possibility and added Osmond right now will not be able to field a boys’ team in high school basketball and will only have a girls’ program next year.
Moes said he would like to get a vote on this topic from both school boards, as well as potentially schedule a joint board meeting in the near future.
Bremer and Wausa Superintendent Brad Hoesing plan to work together to create a schedule for both school boards, with full joint board meetings in January and July, and joint committee meetings in April and October.
Wausa Principal Shane Anderson and Osmond Principal Kurt Polt shared their report on the current cooperative agreement, which covers agriculture/ FFA, football and wrestling.
They started by highlighting FFA classes, scheduling and summer fairs/ competitions/apparel.
Anderson also brought up county fair boards that need to approve the FFA’s ability to show at the Knox County Fair in Bloomfield.
The discussion also included scheduling, the potential for changes in bell schedules and the potential interest of Wausa students in Osmond’s FFA program.
Committee members asked the administration about the Intro to Ag class, how both school districts would handle it if the class sizes get really large and how scheduling would impact other areas.
Jessica Evans, who teaches agricultural education at Osmond, came to speak with 39 Wausa students Jan. 30 and gave them an introduction to FFA.
She laid out the classes, activities, competitions and the why behind FFA. Her classes currently are offered at the beginning and end of the school day.
Intro to Ag, Animal Science, Agribusiness and Horticulture will be the other primary classes offered. Additional courses could be offered through Wausa instructors.
Classes will be offered in Osmond and potentially in Wausa if scheduling can be worked out, and through independent study as a last resort.
Wausa will try to match Osmond’s school schedule the best it can to make the logistics of transporting students work.
Having classes at the beginning and end of the school day allows for some flexibility in travel and the most use of class time.
The challenge will be getting all of Wausa’s students into the introductory class that Osmond students take as freshmen.
Schedule alignment work will begin in late February, with Wausa’s intention to adapt its bell schedule to Osmond.
Both school districts have a similar day in length of time and class periods. However, each homeroom period is currently different.
Adjusting core classes will be needed to make sure students have time to take the necessary Intro to Ag course.
Anderson also is planning to work with Knox County Fair Board member Chris Carlson to make a proper request to the fair board to allow FFA students to show at the 2025 edition of the fair.
Wausa students will be invited to this spring’s FFA awards banquet at Osmond so they can see and learn about the different FFA contests Osmond competes in and to introduce the two student bodies to one another.
FFA jackets will need to be purchased for Wausa students, with fundraising as a potential option for that. These are needed for many events and competitions.
The jackets will say “Osmond,” as that is the FFA chapter name. A chapter name change could be discussed down the road if Osmond and Wausa maintain a long-range agreement in FFA.
Anderson discussed high school football, highlighting team meetings that have happened, as well as a uniform update.
Wausa players and coaches went to Osmond in December and had their first team meeting, with 32 boys in attendance.
New uniforms were on schedule to be purchased and have been ordered. They are traditional Wausa colors and say “Vikings.” Player names can be placed on the back of the uniforms at a later time.
The official 2024 schedules for eight-man football will be released by the Nebraska School Activities Association on Feb. 7. Officials and game times will be determined, along with the Homecoming contest at Osmond. Wausa will choose its Homecoming night first and Osmond will select second.
Summer football activities, such as camps and weightlifting, also were discussed. The summer weightlifting schedule needs to be worked out.
Ideally, players from both school districts would spend as much time together as possible, but there is a logistical piece to this that has to be respected as well.
Football coaching staffs also were discussed, with the ultimate goal of having five coaches on the roster, with two being from Osmond, both for transportation as well as to have an Osmond coach present in case a coach cannot make a practice due to a conflict or an illness.
Wausa head football coach Adrian Alonzo will remain in that position, with coach Tim Schindler (Wausa) and coach Bradley Wright (Osmond) as assistants and potentially two other coaches – one each from Wausa and Osmond – rounding out the staff.
Alonzo also has told Wausa school officials he would like to attend one overnight/team-bonding camp this summer, with the date and location yet to be determined.
Anderson and Polt reported on wrestling, noting the youth programs have met and joined in wrestling.
Wausa currently has three youth wrestlers participating in Osmond’s youth program.
There was also a discussion on the number of potential wrestlers in junior high and high school.
This spring, Wausa will need to try to get a rough number of students who potentially will go out for wrestling next year, especially in junior high.
As of right now, Osmond will only have one wrestler in junior high next year. Osmond has six wrestlers in high school right now; two eighth-graders are also out for wrestling.
Discussions also have been held about girls’ interest in wrestling and whether this program is something worth pursuing.
School officials will continue to gauge the interest from Wausa girls to see whether further action needs to be taken. Osmond currently does not have a girls wrestling program.
Wausa’s next regular school board meeting is set for 8 p.m. Feb. 12, as board members voted in January to move their regular meeting up from the third Monday of the month to the second Monday of the month going forward.
