Introduction

Starting over at a new duty station is challenging. You have to secure housing, find your way around a new area, and figure out where to send your kids for school or figure out what daycares or preschools are right for your children. Luckily, there will be no shortage of quality education and childcare options for your children in and around the Fort Riley area. See for yourself.

Suggested Read:

Fort Riley: In-Depth Welcome Center

Kansas School Enrollment

To be enrolled in a Kansas school, a child must be at least 5 years old by Aug. 31 of the current school year. Registration typically requires a birth certificate or other proof of the child’s age and the child’s previous school records and immunization records. Visit the Kansas Department of Education website for more information. Check with individual schools for additional enrollment requirements prior to arriving.

Schools in Fort Riley

Elementary school-age children living on post can choose from several elementary schools and one middle school on Fort Riley, all part of Geary County Schools. You will also be able to find more information about registration requirements and policies for new students. The on-post elementary schools and middle school at Fort Riley are convenient for military families and feed into other schools in the Geary County Schools district. High school students attend Junction City High School, about six miles from the installation. There are special resources available for military families with children attending any of the Geary County Schools. Reach out to your School Liaison Officer for help.

Fort Riley Elementary Schools

1. Fort Riley Elementary School

28000 Rifle Range Road Fort Riley, KS 66442

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4450 Fort Riley Elementary School enrolls roughly 450 kindergarten through fifth grade students every year. It’s an above-average school as far as academics go, with the percentage of students achieving math and reading/language arts proficiencies are well above the state average. The elementary school offers the basic subjects all children need to learn (addition, reading, writing, etc.) with art, music, and physical education as well.

2. Morris Hill Elementary School

4400 First Division Road Fort Riley, KS 66442

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4650 Morris Hill Elementary School enrolls about 200 pre-K through fifth grade students every year. The elementary school offers smaller class sizes, with an 11 to 1 student-teacher ratio. The school exceeds all state standards for math and reading/language arts proficiencies. The Fort Riley school also offers music programs and opportunities to learn about coding, robotics, and virtual reality in the technology hub at the school library.

3. Seitz Elementary School

2700 Rifle Range Road Fort Riley, KS 66442

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-6500 Seitz Elementary School serves more than 620 students in kindergarten through fifth grade. The school is named for Lt. Gen. Richard Seitz, a Kansas native who led a battalion of paratroopers during World War II’s Battle of the Bulge. The diverse school exceeds all state proficiencies in math and reading/language arts and has a library that boasts over 12,000 books. Seitz students pride themselves on being super readers who read at least 25 minutes every day!

4. Ware Elementary School

6795 Thomas Ave. Fort Riley, KS 66442

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4500 Ware Elementary School enrolls roughly 525 kindergarten through fifth grade students every year. Ware was rated as one of the top 30% of all schools in Kansas based on its math and reading proficiency testing scores. The school also offers an extensive music program where students perform multiple times of the year for parents and community members. Students can benefit from an average student to teacher ratio of 14 to 1.

Fort Riley Middle School

1. Fort Riley Middle School

4022 1st Division Road Fort Riley, KS 66442

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4500 Fort Riley Middle School is an award-winning school and an AVID Highly Certified site. The school enrolls roughly 600 sixth through eighth graders. The middle school has plenty of options for students who want to get involved with athletics: cross country, volleyball and football in the fall; basketball and wrestling during winter months and golf, tennis and track during the spring semester. Students benefit from small class sizes and teachers who emphasize academics and a student’s overall well being.

Fort Riley High School

All high schools are off post and listed below.

Schools Near Fort Riley

Families that choose to live in off-post housing will need to enroll in schools within their associated district. Public school districts generally don’t allow out-of-district enrollment. There is one public school district near Fort Riley, in Geary County.

Geary County Schools District

Geary County Schools

123 N. Eisenhower Drive Junction City, KS 66441

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4000 Geary County Schools serves nearly 7,500 students and their parents of Junction City, Fort Riley, Grandview Plaza, and Milford. The district has 13 elementary schools, two middle schools, one high school and an early childhood center to meet the needs of the 32,000 residents of Geary County. Many students have ties to nearby Fort Riley so the district offers military transition services to make things as easy as possible for transferring students.

Elementary Schools Near Fort Riley

Westwood Elementary School

1600 N. Eisenhower Drive Junction City, KS 66441

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4150 Westwood Elementary School is practically right outside of Fort Riley’s main entrance and is just down the street from the county’s only public high school. The elementary school provides quality education for close to 300 students in kindergarten through fifth grade. The diverse school has a lower than average student to teacher ratio of 12 to 1. Students also benefit from an extensive library and music programs.

Middle Schools Near Fort Riley

Junction City Middle School

700 Wildcat Lane Junction City, KS 66441

Phone

: 1 (785) 717-4400 Junction City Middle School enrolls nearly 1,000 sixth through eighth grade students. The middle school students are split into teams, three for each grade level. The teams of students and teachers help foster strong relationships and provide more one-on-one attention. The students also benefit from an array of athletic programs at the school: cross country, football, volleyball, wrestling, basketball, bowling, tennis, golf, and track.

High Schools Near Fort Riley

Junction City High School

900 N. Eisenhower Drive Junction City, KS 66441 Phone: 1 (785) 717-4200 Junction City High School is a military-connected school that is organized around the concepts of smaller learning communities. The school offers four academies: Business Information Technology, Science Engineering Technology, Fine Arts/Human Service, and the Freshman Success Academy. The JCHS Career Academies are structured around the 16 nationally recognized Career Clusters. As the local high school serving the Fort Riley community, the school also offers an Army JROTC Program.

Charter Schools Near Fort Riley

Charter schools are public schools of choice that are tuition-free, serve all students, and have open enrollment. There is a list of 10 charter schools that are nearby Fort Riley; however, there is only one that is about an hour drive each way. For more information about the charter schools in Kansas, visit the Kansas State Department of Education’s website.

1. Hope Street Charter Academy

1900 SW Hope St. Topeka, KS 66604

Phone

: 1 (785) 438-4280

Private schools near Fort Riley

Parents who choose to send their children to a private school near Fort Riley are met with a handful of options. All of the private schools in the area have a religious affiliation but they do not skimp on academics. According to Private School Review, these are some of the best private schools in the Geary County area.

1. Apostolic Academy

2512 Rucker Road Junction City, KS 66441

Phone

: 1 (785) 238-6413 Apostolic Academy offers small class sizes and focused learning for its approximately 120 students in pre-K through 12th grade. The pentecostal-affiliated academy receives high marks in diversity, academics, clubs and activities, and sports.

2. St. Francis Xavier Catholic School

200 N. Washington St. Junction City, KS 66441

Phone

: 1 (785) 238-2841 St. Francis Xavier Catholic School holds its 150 pre-K through 12th grade students to a high academic and moral standard. The dual-accredited Catholic school boasts small class sizes of around 10 students per classroom.

Daycares near Fort Riley

Leaving your child in someone else’s care is not an easy decision. When looking for the right daycare facility, reading reviews on Care.com and Yelp and visiting a few options when possible is the best way to make a decision about where to send your child. Or, if you’re looking to secure childcare on post at Fort Riley, there are different options to choose from. On-post child care centers offer full-day, part-day, and hourly care for your child.

Conclusion

Moving every few years can be difficult for you and your child but ensuring your child’s education is taken care of right away helps alleviate this burden. There are plenty of educational options near (and on) Fort Riley to make sure your child’s mental and physical well-being will be well taken care of. Use the above information to help narrow down the choices so you can rest easy and spend your time on something else, like finding some of that famous Kansas BBQ to try out or visiting new places.  

The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.