Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Wash. School District Awards Bid for New High School

  • By Matt Jones
  • 04/12/21

The Moses Lake School Board in Moses Lake, Wash., has awarded a contract for the construction of a new high school, informally referred to as the Real World Academy. At a meeting last week, the board voted 4-1 to give the $48.9-million contract to Absher Construction Co., based out of Puyallup, Wash. The project was originally budgeted for $51 million.

“Absher does a lot in the K-12 sector, but there were five bids, all from very reliable firms,” said Superintendent Josh Meek.

The high school will have a student population of roughly 700­–900, and it will focus primarily on technical and career education. It was part of a school construction bond passed in 2017 that also originally included plans for a second new high school with a student capacity of 1,600 and a new elementary school. After district voters challenged the certification of the bond election, it was upheld by a panel of three appellate court judges in Spokane in 2018. By then, the school board had changed, and its new members preferred the construction of one smaller high school and two new elementary schools.

The decision to move forward with Real World Academy has proved controversial. School board member Bryce McPartland, who voted against awarding the contract to Absher, said that the smaller technical academy isn’t what district residents originally voted for.

“The taxpayers of this district did not approve this,” said McPartland. “They rejected the expansion of the campus. That the Real World Academy is the second high school approved by voters is not supported by the facts.”

Meek said that construction is hopefully scheduled to begin during April for an opening date of August 2022. Preparations to the construction site have been in the works since January. One of the other new elementary schools, Groff Elementary School, is slated to open to students for the fall 2021 semester.

“I’m pretty excited about the bid, and we’re getting ready to build,” said Vickey Melcher, Board President.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.

  • Children walking along bright school corridor with motion blur

    How Next-Gen Design Is Reshaping the Student Experience

    The environments where students learn play a crucial role in shaping their growth in and out of the classroom. By centering design on well-being, flexibility, and purpose, districts can ensure their facilities remain vibrant community assets for many years to come.

  • Girl Sitting at Library Desk, Using Laptop

    How Campus Design Shapes the Finals Week Experience

    Academic performance is not just about preparation. It is closely tied to how students manage stress, maintain their energy, and shift between work and recovery modes. Much of that is influenced, directly or indirectly, by design.

  • Image courtesy of Kahler Slater

    UW–Madison Announces Completion of Morgridge Hall

    The University of Wisconsin–Madison recently announced that construction is complete on Morgridge Hall, a new academic building, according to a news release. The facility opened September 3 at the start of the fall semester, consolidating the School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences into a single facility for the first time.