The project to improve the Keota High School commons area is almost completely funded, and has officially received the backing of the Keota School Board, according to Superintendent Dennis Phelps. At the most recent Keota School Board meeting, they officially approved moving forward with the project. It’s been funded mostly by the Eagles Advocates group, which is a community organization who sponsors projects to improve the school, with over $15,000 raised so far. Phelps says the school has been pricing lockers and has found some that will work for the commons project. The next task is to start looking at bids.

The hope is that the project will be completely finished before the next school year starts, and Phelps says they’ve imposed a deadline on themselves, “We have a goal, it has to be done by August 1st. So we want the lockers and the flooring, anything else that needs to be done by that time. The different kinds of furniture in there, that can be done at any time. If we can do some right away, we will. We’d like to look at different chairs, different types of tables. From taller to shorter tables, tables that have the ability to move, tables that will have charging stations with them. So really kind of move more towards the 21st century in that area.” Phelps adds, most of the physical work of moving lockers will be done by Keota residents, and he’s pleased there’s so much community support for the school.