Geary County School District gets $24 million grant to build new elementary school

AJ Dome, The Manhattan Mercury, Kan.
·3 min read

Apr. 14—USD 475 Geary County is getting a new elementary school to replace the aging Jefferson Elementary building in Fort Riley.

Geary County School District officials announced Monday the approval of a $24.4 million grant from the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) within the U.S. Department of Defense to build a new school on Custer Hill. The grant provides 80% of the $30 million total budget for the project.

David Wild, USD 475 chief operations officer, said in an email that demolition of Jefferson Elementary will begin as early as August of this year, with earthwork on the new school scheduled to begin in late fall or early winter.

"This will be the fourth new school on Fort Riley in recent years, and will ensure Fort Riley has modern, viable schools for decades to come," Wild said.

The new school will have a capacity of 390 students from pre-kindergarten to fifth grade and include six pre-K classrooms. Wild said the need stems from Jefferson Elementary being closed at the end of the school year in 2019 because of a recurring boiler failure.

District personnel and Fort Riley officials met with OLDCC staff to pitch the idea of a new 81,000-square foot school building that same year.

"We anticipated a final decision this time last year, but it was delayed due to Congress directing OLDCC to initiate its Defense Communities Investment Program," Wild said. "The pandemic then caused further delays."

The new school — its name yet to be determined by USD 475 Board of Education members and Fort Riley officials — will be constructed on the same acreage as Jefferson Elementary, and follow the U.S. Army's standards for energy, anti-terrorism, and force protection. These standards include storm shelters and other modern school safety measures. The total project, including design and construction, is estimated to take 23 months. Wild said students moved to other local schools once Jefferson Elementary closed.

"Students were redirected and absorbed into other nearby schools on post, as well as other schools of choice in Junction City," Wild said. "Upon completion of the new elementary school, students from nearby Warner and Ellis Heights housing areas will return to the new neighborhood school."

The district built Jefferson Elementary in 1959 and added on to the building in subsequent years. Wild said an Army audit of the building cited it as a priority for repair and/or replacement.

"All components of the school are at the end of useful functionality," Wild said. "The classrooms are sized below current district standards, and do not provide an adequate environment for current and emerging information technology demands."

Wild said the district's cost-benefit analysis indicated the cost of renovating Jefferson Elementary was prohibitive, at 84% of the cost of constructing a new building.

U.S. Senator Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, released a statement saying he applauded the Defense Department grant, and the movement forward on a new school for Fort Riley.

"The school ... will be a great addition to Fort Riley's thriving military community," Moran said. "Our nation's military children deserve the very best education we can offer them, and this school will offer that opportunity to the children of First Infantry Division soldiers."