Roosevelt Elementary was built in 1925. The PTA was organized on May 8, 1925, and the school opened in 1926. Originally named Theodore Roosevelt School and the Palma Ceia School, Roosevelt Elementary was named for Theodore Roosevelt, former President of the United States and Colonel of the Rough Riders. Urban legend reports that the site of our campus was the camping ground of the Rough Riders when Colonel Roosevelt's regiment was in Tampa preparing for his conflict in Cuba.

To commemorate our 75th anniversary, we had a wonderful ceremony, which included many local citizens, some of whom attended Roosevelt as children and some who taught here through the years. During this rededication ceremony in 1990, arrangements were made with the Tampa Bay Rough Riders, a local men's civic organization, to become a school business partner and sponsor. We named our auditorium the Sam Gibbons Auditorium in honor of Roosevelt alumni and deceased, US Congressman the Honorable Sam Gibbons. And, our mascot was officially changed from the Roosevelt Road Runners to the Roosevelt Rough Riders. Our school colors and navy blue, gold and khaki which are reflected in the uniforms of the Rough Riders.

In April 2007, Roosevelt Elementary celebrated it's 80th birthday with a school program, grand unveiling of our historical marker and the grand opening of our covered pavilion, built by efforts from the Roosevelt Dad's Club. Our birthday party included presentations by all grade levels, our choruses singing a song that they wrote the lyrics to. Our special guests included Dean Twiggs, our favorite Rough Rider. Mr. Dean presented a Rough Rider flag to the school to be flown everyday on the flagpole. Mrs. Valerie Orihuela, Area Director, Area One attended, Sam Gibbons and Councilwoman Alvarez.

Initially, the school included an office complex with adjacent wings and an auditorium.

• In 1946, the original wings were extended west to add additional classrooms.
• In 1954, the property on the north side of Obispo was obtained to build another flanking wing.
• In 1961, our cafeteria and kitchen were added.
• In 1990, Roosevelt was updated and refurbished creating new office suites, a media center and new classrooms.
• In 2002, we added an additional four classrooms located in the back of the school along Concordia Avenue.
• In 2007, we opened our new covered pavilion along Concordia Avenue.
• In 2007, construction of eight new classrooms was completed.

Former principals of Roosevelt include Laverne Nelson, Mabel Nelson, Laura Ellen Weeks, Dot Perricone, Myrna Robinson, Richard Blandy, Helen Cathcart, Winnie McCandless, Colleen Faucett and Christina Dickens. The current principal is Denise Wheatley.

Roosevelt Elementary sits quietly hidden in South Tampa. We are proud of its lovely Spanish architecture and invite you to visit our school and browse through the many scrapbooks and memorabilia, which are a testimony to the rich heritage here at Roosevelt.