A new kindergarten through eighth grade school that’s being constructed in the Starkey Ranch community now has an official name: Starkey Ranch K-8.
The school is scheduled to open next fall, and will part of a complex that includes a district park, a theater and library. The district park opened in November 2017.
The quartet of community amenities resulted from a public-public-private partnership involving Pasco County Schools, Pasco County and the Wheelock Communities, the private developers of Starkey Ranch, a community off State Road 54 in Trinity.
Starkey Ranch K-8 School is the public school district’s first school specifically designed for elementary and middle school students.
The school is expected to have about 1,000 elementary school students and 600 middle school students. The campus includes a gymnasium, athletic fields, a running track and sports courts that will be available during non-school hours to residents, through a shared-use agreement.
Additionally, the third part of the partnership involves Pasco County, and involves the construction of what’s been dubbed TLC, which stands for theater, library and cultural center.
The TLC will accommodate public library patrons and students. It also will have a 250-seat theater and three makerspaces.
The Pasco County School Board approved the school’s official name during its Oct. 6 meeting. The board prefers to name schools after the general location, features of the area or historical information about the area.
Published October 14, 2020
