FRANKFORD, Mo. — The Bowling Green R-I School District broke ground Tuesday afternoon at Frankford Elementary for a new Federal Emergency Management Agency approved storm shelter, which will also serve as additional classrooms for the schools art and music classes.
The building is being erected from federal funds based on an application Dr. Matthew Frederickson began working on in 2018. The grant required cooperative work between the school district, county commission, the Mark Twain Council of Government along with the City of Frankford and the local fire department, who had to write a portion of the application.
The timetable for completion is about a year and a half. Dr. Frederickson said the community will begin to see work over the Christmas break and the building is expected to be substantially complete by the summer of 2023. He added that the district is working with the Missouri Department of Transportation to build an additional road to help with traffic to and from the campus and the new building. It was also announced at the groundbreaking, Frankford has received approval for a new tornado siren for the area.
While celebrating the new building, Frankford Elementary was also recognized for their excellence. The school was just recognized by U.S. News and World Report as one of the top 100 elementary schools in Missouri. The school will be donned with banners acknowledging the achievement by the staff and students.