Published on March 18, 2024 at 3:14 pm
St. Johns County keeps growing, and two new schools have officially been named: Trout Creek Academy and Lakeside Academy.
The K-8 schools are under construction, and both are expected to open for the next school year, when they will have room for about 1,500 students each.
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St. Johns County Schools counted almost 52,000 students enrolled as of last month, and that number is expected to keep growing. The district projects a 12% increase in students by the 2027-28 school year.
More new schools are planned to accommodate that growth. Lakeside and Trout Creek are just two of nine schools funded for construction during the next five years. That list of schools includes six K-8 schools, one high school, an elementary school and an expansion to South Woods Elementary School near Hastings.
The principal for Trout Creek Academy, at 855 Timberwolf Trail in St. Augustine, will be Katherine O’Connell. The principal for Lakeside Academy, at 1455 Twin Creeks Drive in St. Augustine, will be Jesse Gates.
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Staff and community members suggested the new school names. The School Board approved them last week.
A proposal was initially made to name Trout Creek Academy after former St. Johns County School Board member William Mignon. Mignon worked as a principal at a number of St. Johns County schools and served four consecutive terms as a member of the School Board. He died last month at age 86.
Ultimately, despite members of the School Board saying Mignon deserved to have a school named after him, the board opted to wait until a formal policy is created regarding naming schools after people who have died.
