Schools receive funding from capital budget

OAKESDALE — Two local school districts received funding through the Capital Budget.

Oakesdale school district received $38,000, and Garfield received $33,000.

Oakesdale Superintendent Dr. Jake Dingman stated it was a planning grant for the rural modernization program.

The small school district modernization grant assists small school districts of one thousand students or less with school facilities that have significant building system deficiencies and low property value, which makes replacing or modernizing the school facility through the program ease up on the tax burden on property owners or allowable debt for the district.

Dingman stated that the program allows the school to do engineering studies.

“It’s a planning grant, which allows us to figure out what we need to do,” Dingman said.

He further explained that the program’s design requires improving the energy efficiency of schools, noting that the idea is to have up-to-date, efficient, renovated buildings.

Dingman explained some ideas the school has for improvement, including remodeling the high school gym and looking into doing similar projects.

“It’s a great program that’s helped a lot of the local schools,” Dingman said, adding that the Oakesdale school district is glad that the state legislature put money into it, so they could all move forward.