WIMAUMA, Fla. — The Hillsborough County School District offered a sneak peek at its newest, and largest school, Aquilla J. Morgan High School in Wimauma.
The school is named after Aquilla J. Morgan, who was the first African American teacher at Wimauma Elementary School in the 1960s.
Construction started in June 2023, and the school is expected to open to students next school year. District officials say room at the new school will help alleviate Lennard High School and Sumner High School, which are currently exceeding their capacity.
About 3,500 students will soon proudly call themselves “Mustangs” as some of the first students at Aquilla J. Morgan High School.
“This school is special. This school was built to kind of replace an original school that used to live here in Wimauma," Aquilla J. Morgan High School principal Brittney Wilhelm. "There was a Wimauma High School years ago, so the community feels very strongly about bringing this high school back to this area."
Wilhelm grew up in Wimauma and said the new school will be large enough to not only accommodate thousands of students, but also still offer a variety of programs with state-of-the-art classrooms.
“We are the most southeast high school (in the county), and we need to be able to prepare ourselves for all the building that’s going on," Wilhelm said. "And any way that you drive from this school out, you’ll notice they’re clearing land or they’ve already put homes in. So we are prepared to take those students in."
The school cost $178 million, with money coming from impact fees, millage and capital funds. Hillsborough County School Board member Patti Rendon said part of the cost included building the school to withstand up to a Category 5 storm, and other safety features.
“Those types of things have direct impacts on the build of this school, so we want to make sure we’re maximizing the space," Rendon said. "Also want to make sure everyone understands anytime you build a shelter safe school, you’re increasing the cost by 30% or more. So we made sure everything used here is going to be safe in a storm."
Aquilla J. Morgan High School is sitting on the back 50 acres of a 100-acre property There are already plans to build a middle school and elementary school on other parts of the property.
EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story stated that a 2018 sales tax referendum was part of the funding. That statement has been corrected.
