AUBURN, Ala. (EETV) - The Auburn City Schools Board of Education approved updated plans to build a second high school in the Auburn area on Tuesday.
Auburn has grown in population, and Auburn City Schools recognized the need for a second high school to accommodate the growing population. The city of Auburn is the seventh largest city in Alabama, and it has seen a population growth of over 40% in the last 10 years.
Auburn City Schools owns 127 acres of land on North Donahue which is reserved for the new high school.
The name of the new high school, the color scheme and the mascot have not been determined yet. A group of community stakeholders including students, teachers, parents and community members will have an opportunity for input in these decisions.
The total cost for this project is $139 million which includes $105 million for construction costs.
Initially, the school planned to open in August 2024, but the opening has been delayed to August 2027. The reason for this delay was because enrollment was still growing, but not as fast as they had seen five to 10 years ago when the original plan was made.
“A second high school has been a topic of discussion in our community for some time now and the plans for it were board approved in May 2018,” said Daniel Chesser, Auburn City Schools public relations coordinator.
The original Auburn High School opened in 2017 and is the only high school in Auburn. It holds grades 10-12. The school is located at 1701 East Samford Ave.
Woodland Pines Elementary School is also planning to open as Auburn’s 10th elementary school in August 2023.
Currently, there are four elementary zones and nine elementary schools.
These two projects will increase the capacity for the number of students and the quality of education for students within the city of Auburn.
