This week's featured stories

  • The street between the middle school and high school was cited as a safety concern during the district’s facility status review. Thus in each of the initial seven proposals discussed last week the street was either enclosed or a green space was created with the area blocked from traffic.
    The street between the middle school and high school was cited as a safety concern during the district’s facility status review. Thus in each of the initial seven proposals discussed last week the street was either enclosed or a green space was created with the area blocked from traffic.
  • Hampton preschoolers (from left) Kaylee Hagan, Brock Dose, Luna Lang, Kinsley Glinsman, Hayes Faller, Aubrey Goertzen and Samuel Denny imitate the Santa’s signature laugh.
    Hampton preschoolers (from left) Kaylee Hagan, Brock Dose, Luna Lang, Kinsley Glinsman, Hayes Faller, Aubrey Goertzen and Samuel Denny imitate the Santa’s signature laugh.
  • NSP Trooper Daniel Christenson receives his badge at a ceremony in Lincoln Friday
    NSP Trooper Daniel Christenson receives his badge at a ceremony in Lincoln Friday
  • Prairie Food, a Kansas-based company focused on replenishing soil health while reducing synthetic inputs, opened a sales location earlier this month on the west side of the downtown square. Pictured from left are company representatives Pete Martin, Ben Vincent and Chris Vincent
    Prairie Food, a Kansas-based company focused on replenishing soil health while reducing synthetic inputs, opened a sales location earlier this month on the west side of the downtown square. Pictured from left are company representatives Pete Martin, Ben Vincent and Chris Vincent

    With preliminary cost estimates for various options of the Aurora School District’s master plan adding up to tens of millions of dollars, the architectural firm hired to work with the district is advising that a phased plan be considered as a way to break the needed work up into stages over multiple years. Toward the end of last week’s three-hour meeting with the community advisory committee, a BVH Architecture advisor with first-hand experience addressing that issue shared his perspective as a former superintendent of schools in Fremont.

    Hampton preschoolers reminded the audience at the Hampton Elementary Christmas Program on Dec. 11 to be ready for Santa’s imminent arrival by singing “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town.” The program included selections by various vocal and instrumental groups including the 5th and 6th grade bands as well as songs from the school's upcoming production of the Broadway musical “Annie.” 

    Daniel Christenson of Aurora was sworn-in Friday along with 17 other new Nebraska state troopers ready to begin serving across the state. Members of the Nebraska State Patrol’s (NSP) 72nd Basic Recruit Class were sworn-in during a ceremony at the State Capitol in Lincoln, which was attended by Gov. Jim Pillen. Christenson, a 2022 graduate of Aurora High School, will wear badge number 429 and his initial duty station will be Hastings. 

    A Kansas-based agronomy company has expanded its operations with a location in downtown Aurora, hoping to help area producers grow more with less fertilizer, water and risk all while focusing on soil health. What started as a quest to turn cattle manure into renewable fuel evolved into what PrairieFood executives are calling a breakthrough soil biology solution. First by accident, and then by design, the company sought to transform local biowaste into microbe-ready carbon that revives tired soil and reduces the reliance on synthetic inputs. “What we do is take biowaste, which would be compost, manure and wet distillers grain that you get from an ethanol plant, and create a pre-mix,” explained Ben Vincent, an Aurora native who now works as head of sales and distribution for the young company. Read the story of this new business on this week's Business page (A6).

    These stories and more can be found in the print and e-editions of this week's Aurora News-Register.