\u201cThis athletic and performing arts center is something I have personally dedicated the last 25 years of my life to developing,\u201d Flanders said. \u201cWhile our grown children spent their school years practicing, performing and competing in rented spaces, our grandchildren will have the opportunity to enjoy this space and everything it offers for many, many years to come.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The approximately 24,000-square-foot center includes an 11,000-square-foot gymnasium, 11 classrooms and spaces for culinary arts, visual arts and video production, as well as a 30-by-16-foot retractable stage. The project broke ground in March 2025<\/a> after plans for the expansion were delayed following the COVID-19 pandemic. The school moved to its current Marden Road campus in 2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n Flanders said the building represents the next chapter not only for her family but for the school community and future generations of students.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis building is more than walls and classrooms,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is a place where children will discover talents they didn\u2019t know they had.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Julia Najera, Central Florida Prep\u2019s head of school and Flanders\u2019 daughter, formally dedicated the building to her father during the ceremony.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cMy dad didn\u2019t live to see this building, but he didn\u2019t need to,\u201d Najera said. \u201cHe already knew what it would become because he and my mother built it that way from the very beginning, one act of belief at a time.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Najera said in written responses after the ceremony that students are already using the center. Volleyball season is underway, with the school hosting home games in the new facility for the first time. The Compass Caf\u00e9 concession area has opened, and physical education classes now have dedicated indoor space. Basketball will follow volleyball, and the school plans to host volleyball tournaments in October. Performing arts events are expected to begin in December.\u00a0<\/p>\n Najera said the school\u2019s middle- and high-school performing arts program has also launched a Junior Thespians Club, with two productions planned during the school year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Teresa Sargeant has been with The Apopka Chief for over 10 years.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1788589338_800_6.png\")
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