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The Department of War, Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, today awarded Academy District 20 a $42.7 million grant as the federal share of a larger $54.1 million project to construct a new Douglass Valley K8 School at the United States Air Force Academy, Colorado.
This project will address facility capacity and condition deficiencies that placed Douglass Valley K8 School as #71 on the 2019 Deputy Secretary of Defense "Public Schools on Military Installations Priority List" (Priority List). Upon completion, 787 students in prekindergarten through eighth grade will be supported through this project.
Funding for this grant is provided under the Department's Public Schools on Military Installations Program. In making these funds available, the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation must give priority consideration to military installations that have schools with the most serious facility capacity and condition deficiencies, as determined by the Priority List.
A multi-disciplined Federal Evaluation Team, with representatives from the Assistant Secretaries of the Air Force, Army, Navy, and the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, reviewed the school project to ensure the award appropriately addresses the noted facility capacity and condition deficiencies.
In correcting the identified facility condition and capacity issues at the Douglass Valley K8 School, this grant keeps faith with service members, improves the quality of education for defense-connected students, aids in the recruitment and retention of vital skills at the United States Air Force Academy, and enhances partnerships between the community and the installation.