91ÖÆƬ

The Norris 91ÖÆƬ consists of approximately 230 square miles --about 40 lie in Gage County, 3 in Otoe County,  and the remainder in Lancaster County.  Nine small communities are within the boundaries of the Norris School District: Roca, Hickman, Firth, Cortland, Panama, Princeton, Holland, Cheney and Rokeby.  The Norris District is bordered on the north by the Lincoln Public Schools, on the west by the Crete and Wilbur 91ÖÆƬ, on the south by the Beatrice, Freeman, and Tri-County 91ÖÆƬ, and on the east by the Bennet-Palmyra and Sterling Districts.The 2009-2010 enrollment is 2,033 – 770 in the Elementary (PK-4), 641 in the Middle School (5-8), and 598 in the High School (9-12).The school campus is centrally located with the district on 270 acres at the intersection of 68th Street and Princeton Road, twelve miles south of Lincoln. The site consists of the Elementary, Middle School, and High School buildings; bus barn, paved parking areas, outdoor athletic and activity fields, cross-country course, and all-weather running track.The school district is divided into six wards with approximately 1250 residents per ward for a total school district population of approximately 7500. Candidates file by ward, to assure representation from the various geographic areas on the Board of education, and are elected by the voters of the entire Norris School District.The Norris School District is primarily rural residential, small town, and agricultural in nature. Many Norris residents are employed in Lincoln. As the Lincoln area continues to grow to the south and east, the population of the Norris District is expected to continue to increase steadily.The racial and ethnic background is predominately white Anglo-Saxon. Many of the original inhabitants of the southeast portion of the district were of Dutch descent. There is a fairly strong religious influence in the school district which includes Dutch Reform, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Catholic, and several other denominations.Norris School District 160 was formed as a result of the merger of the Roca, Hickman, and Firth 91ÖÆƬ on June 1, 1964. Three more districts (Cortland, Panama, and Princeton) joined Norris the following year. On June 15, 2006, portions of the Rokeby and Cheney Class I districts officially became part of the Norris School District.