BUFFALO TWP — The Freeport School District will spend $676,331 for partial roof replacements at Buffalo and South Buffalo elementary schools.

The school board Thursday approved the bid for the work by Miller-Thomas-Gyekis of Pittsburgh. The work will be done this summer.

Superintendent Ian Magness said this is the first phase of a two-phase project. For summer 2017, roof work will be done on the high school. That work will be bid later.

Also Thursday, the board approved a change order on the new middle school that will result in the contractor returning more than $200,000 to the district.

“We’re just glad we’re getting money back,” said school board President Dan Lucovich.

Business manager Ryan Manzer said there are two reasons that led to this.

One is that certain allowances in the budget for the project were not spent by the contractor.

The other is that the contractor did not have to move as much dirt as originally thought.

Magness said “prudent decisions” helped lead to the money being returned. He also expects more money to be returned in March and April.

The $30-million, 115,000-square-foot building, which is next to the high school in the township and replaces the former junior high school in Freeport, opened in September, but more work needed to be done on the gymnasium and auditorium after that.

In other action, the board approved “college in high school” agreements with Westmoreland County Community College, Seton Hill University and the University of Pittsburgh.

Larry Robb, program director, said these agreements will allow students to get college credit for taking courses in the high school.

In other agreements the district has, students take classes at the college campuses rather than the high school.

Robb said about 25 courses will be offered in these programs. He said these are courses the school already offers, but now will be available for college credit.

He said the agreement with Seton Hill still is being finalized, but the other two are set.

Magness said the courses will cost $250 to $300. He said the programs will be at no cost to the district and said no new staff will be added.