Kansas Senator Jerry Moran announced this past week that authorization has been secured for USD 475 to plan for and apply for grants to build a new elementary school at Fort Riley.

A check with the Chief Operations Officer for the school district, David Wild, explained if a grant application to the Office of Economic Adjustment the district would provide matching funds totaling 20% of the cost while OEA will provide the remaining 80%. “And we’ll start planning for a new elementary school at Fort Riley, and this is the same process for the Fort Riley Middle School as well Fort Riley Elementary. ” Both of those schools have been built on post in recent years.

Wild noted the grant application will look at replacing two elementary schools on post including Jefferson and Morris Hill Elementary schools. “When the district makes its’ grant application our proposal will be a two-for. We will decommission both Jefferson and Morris Hill Elementary in exchange for one new grade school.”

The total cost for a new elementary school at Fort Riley has been estimated at $25 million. The school district’s share of that amount would be $5 million with a federal grant covering the remainder.