Three school districts across El Paso County are among this year’s recipients of the Colorado Department of Education’s annual Building Excellent Schools Today (BEST) Grant funding.

Widefield School District 3, Hanover School District 28 and Peyton School District 23-JT are among this year’s 19 recipients of approximately $183 million to replace aging infrastructure and, in some cases, entire schools.

Since 2008, BEST has awarded about $3.7 billion in grants for the construction of schools as well as general construction and renovation of existing school facility systems and structures.

During its June meeting last week, the State Board of Education approved 19 school construction grants for 15 school districts, two charter schools and one Board of Cooperative Educational Services.

“Colorado students and educators need and deserve high-quality spaces and places for learning,” education commissioner Susana Córdova said in a news release. “BEST grants not only support school districts with new construction but also provide funding to keep existing buildings in good repair.”

About $120 million for this year’s projects will be funded by income from the Colorado State Land Board, marijuana excise taxes, Colorado Lottery spillover and earned interest.

For the remaining $63 million, applicants will be expected to contribute matching funds.

In the event that an awarded project fails to secure its matching funds, a separate list of backup projects has also been prioritized this year and includes upgrades at Colorado Early Colleges Colorado Springs, James Irwin Elementary School-Howard and James Irwin Elementary School-Astrozon.

Peyton Elementary School will replace its 30-year-old roof for $807,000 through a combination of grant funding and the district’s general fund, capital reserve and a previously passed mill levy.

According to the district’s application for the grant, the roof’s construction is scheduled for summer 2025.

“We are unable to predict when catastrophic failure of our roof system will occur,” the application reads. “We understand our roof is beyond its useful life span and the significance of the shrinkage, frequency and severity of the water entry events will increase.”

Over in Fountain, Prairie Heights Elementary School will receive over $13.2 million to address its failing roof, inadequate water treatment, improper security measures, mechanical system failures, inadequate electrical systems, improper ventilation, and sewage backups stemming from aging facilities. Nearly $8 million will come from the grant, while 5.3 million will be funded by the district’s utilities department and a 2022 bond.

In D-3, the grant worth up to nearly $2.9 million will finance a new roof, HVAC system and new boilers for Janitell Junior High School. Per the agreement, the district will match over $5 million toward the project. The funds come by way of a certificate of participation loan, which is financing for capital assets paid out of existing operating funds instead of selling bonds from an election.

The district has been awarded six BEST grants since 2019, with over $5.2 million going toward improved safety and security, asbestos removal, boiler replacements and other building renovations across its schools.

Elsewhere in Colorado Springs, Atlas Preparatory School, Harrison School District 2 and Mountain Song Community School were among last year’s beneficiaries of over $32.5 million in upgrades due, in part, to BEST grants.

The current roof, rooftop units, and boilers at Janitell are over 50 years old and are among the renovation projects at 17 schools recently detailed throughout the district that have yet to begin.

“With this BEST grant, the district will be able to offset some of the costs of the project which will allow us to put more district CAP (capital improvement projects) funds into needs for other sites,” said D-3’s chief operations officer Dave Gish in a separate news release.

Though there are no plans for votes on this year’s November ballot, the hope is for future funding for the remaining projects to come from a future bond.

“We will continue to apply for grants and seek additional funding opportunities, but we are looking at asking voters for assistance in 2025 to give our staff, students and community the facilities they need and deserve,” Gish said.