Gov. Bob Riley got an up-close look inside the still-under-construction Jemison Intermediate School on Wednesday.

Chilton County Schools Superintendent Keith Moore gave the governor a tour of the school.

The school is being built with money from a $1 billion school construction bond Riley proposed and the Alabama Legislature approved in 2007.

“If it had not been for that bond money, we wouldn’t have been able to build this new school,” said Moore.

The school system received $6.3 million to build the new school. Construction should be completed by October.

Riley said it’s important Chilton County students receive the same opportunities as students elsewhere.

“Rural areas have their unique opportunities, and (we must) give students the same chance they would have all over Alabama,” Riley said.

The new school will eliminate the need for portables at Jemison Elementary School plus give the system room to grow for 10 years, Riley said.

Jemison Intermediate School would likely open during the start of the new semester in January, Moore said. The system will decide in the coming weeks which grade levels will attend the school.