By John D. Banusiewicz American Forces Press Service FORT RILEY, Kan., May 20, 2011 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates returned here yesterday to deliver on a promise he made last year.
Gates told the spouses that he was aware of the situation and had identified Defense Department money that could help. He promised to secure the required congressional approval to transfer the money to the Education Department for action. "Today, we mark a major step forward in solving school overcrowding here at Fort Riley, a problem that had become a major retention issue for the [1st Infantry Division], which is on its fourth deployment since 2003," he said. Defense Department officials indentified the facilities here as being the most in need of rehabilitation of any across the armed services, the secretary said, so the need to act was clear. The problem, though, is not unique to Fort Riley, the secretary said. "It is clear that such on-installation public school facility problems are pervasive," Gates said. "The department has more than 150 public schools on military installations across America, and a recent assessment showed that many other school districts have similar difficulties raising the revenue required to meet capacity requirements and rehabilitate aging facilities." All stakeholders – including local, state and federal governments – must address the problem, Gates said, and he noted that, as a first step, Congress has appropriated $250 million for the Defense Department to directly assist school districts in revitalizing the public schools on military installations that have the greatest need. "That funding will pay for this new elementary school, and also provide the resources this year toward resolving the capacity issue at Fort Riley Middle School," he said. Local school districts should and will remain ultimately responsible for public school facilities on military bases, the secretary said. But the Defense Department, he added, always will be ready to intervene when it has the ability to improve military children's educational opportunities. "We owe nothing less to our men and women in uniform and their families, who have sacrificed so much in order to serve our country," he said. Future kindergarten students – each wearing a construction worker's hard hat – manned the shovels for the ceremonial groundbreaking for what will be their new school. Geary County Unified School District 475 operates five elementary schools and a middle school here. Five of the six schools are more than 50 years old, and recent growth at the installation has contributed to the posts' schools being 35 percent over capacity. Temporary fixes have included converting available usable space into classrooms, which has led to a lack of other educational activity space. Before the groundbreaking ceremony, Gates met privately with several dozen military spouses to seek their input on family-related issues. (Shandi Dix of the 1st Infantry Division Post contributed to this article.) | ||
| Biographies: Robert M. Gates | ||
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Gates Keeps Promise for Families at Fort Riley
First Lady Visits Military Youth Center
By Senior Airman Susan Moreno Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling Public Affairs WASHINGTON, May 20, 2011 - First lady Michelle Obama visited Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling youth center here yesterday to complete a congressional spouses service project with 40 of the installation's youth.
This year, the project was geared toward military families. The first lady and congressional spouses painted a mural at the base's youth center, which provides care for more than 300 children of military families. They also painted several benches to be placed around the base. "Thank you so much to everyone for coming out today," Obama said to the crowd of families gathered. "You guys are making sacrifices that most Americans don't even understand. It means so much to the communities we work with. It's priceless for them, and it's priceless for us." The youth center supports several community youth programs such as the home school community, Tiny Tots Play Group, Boy Scouts, the National Jr. ROTC Knowledge Bowl, and youth town hall meetings." Congressional spouses also expressed their pleasure and enthusiasm to have a part in the project. "As the wife of a former lieutenant commander in the Navy, working with military families is near and dear to my heart," said Colleen Peters, wife of U.S. Rep. Gary Peters of Michigan. "When military members serve, their families serve too." Peters was a Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist in the U.S. Navy Reserve. He served in the Persian Gulf supporting Operation Southern Watch and overseas during increased military activity following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. "Mrs. Obama's call to service is so meaningful," said Mary Sorteberg, who is married to U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon. "That's why people serve in Congress and on the Hill. I wish we had three times as many people here today!" "Only one percent of the country's population defends the entire nation," said Leighton Oshima, spouse of U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii. "This is the least we can do. I am happy to have this opportunity to help some of our service members." Student teaching artists from the Corcoran Gallery of Art's ArtReach Program and the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities helped design and carry out the project. "I want to thank Mrs. Obama and all the congressional spouses who are here today," said Darrilyn Young, the base's child and youth programs director. "I am so excited, because the recipients of this honor are benefitting on so many different levels. This is living proof of why we have dreams and visions." | ||
| Biographies: First Lady Michelle Obama | ||
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