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 The first school to serve the citizens of LeRoy was held in the home of Miss Melissa Allen in 1856 in District 4. In 1857, Daniel Caswell opened a school in his home in "Old Town." A grout or stone building was erected that fall at the present site of the Lutheran Cemetery. It was used for public meetings as well. When the community moved to the new town site, so did the school. A two-story brick building was built at a cost of $5,000 in 1868. One hundred and fifty students attended the school from grade one and up. Dunbar Leach headed the staff as principal. A definite course of study was established in 1869. To meet the ever increasing enrollment, the school added extra rooms. The first addition was in 1883, the second in 1892. The school was serving all twelve grades and a larger school was needed with a modern approach. A two-story brick building was built at a present site of the high school gymnasium. Sports became a part of the curriculum in 1903 with the formation of a girls' basketball team and the first field Meet. Baseball came in 1905 and football in 1909. An addition was completed in 1912. The school built an athletic field to the east of the building in cooperation with the city. Lights were added in 1937. A $47,000 gymnasium-auditorium, and two classrooms were constructed in 1939. In the winter of 1942, a hot lunch program was begun and a lunchroom and kitchen were added in 1947. As the need for education beyond the eighth grade became more apparent, four classrooms, a science laboratory and a home economics laboratory were added to the west of the gymnasium. The largest increase and consolidation plan took place in 1956. Eighteen districts including the Ostrander Village school combined with LeRoy. This consolidation brought the school population to 281 elementary and 214 high school students. An expansion of the school was necessary and a $525,000 bond issue was authorized. The construction produced a three-classroom elementary school on a five-acre site at Ostrander. Also included in the building is a library, offices, sick room, kitchen and a 40 by 60 foot multipurpose room. In LeRoy, a nine classroom elementary addition was built directly behind the old school. The addition included many auxiliary rooms. A new and larger gymnasium was added on the site of the old school after it was raised. A supplementary bond issue in 1958 supplied the funds for two elementary classrooms and other facilities. Remodeling created a classroom, agriculture room and industrial arts area. In 1990 a four lane Olympic indoor swimming pool was built featuring the largest whirlpool in southern Minnesota. A new addition and renovation was completed at the LeRoy-Ostrander School in 1998. The renovation included a Media Center with updated technology, Commons Area, Music Addition, Agricultural/Industrial Arts, Gym restoration, Kitchen and Administrative Offices. The building also became handicapped accessible. |