KCD celebrates the grand opening of the Meriwether STEAM Academic Center

KCD students and faculty gathered to celebrate the historic occasion with a ribbon cutting ceremony on the steps of the building on Thursday, March 3, 2022. Additionally, a celebratory adults-only reception (for parents, alumni, past parents, and friends of the school) will take place on the evening of March 4, 2022.

The Meriwether STEAM Academic Center is the central hub for interdisciplinary learning on KCD’s 80+ acre campus. With nearly 20,000 added square feet of space, this new building is home to our Upper and Middle School Design & Fabrication Lab, Lower School Maker Space, classrooms for Computer Science, Middle School Art, and Lower School Science, administrative offices, and a new Spirit Store.

Peter Huestis, Head of School at KCD, shared, “The Meriwether STEAM Academic Center is the focal point of the Create Together Capital Campaign—a project that has included the renovation of the JK-8 building (summers of 2020 & 2021), addition of Meriwether STEAM Academic Center, and renovation/new construction within KCD’s indoor athletics facilities (to be completed summer 2022). The Create Together campaign represents an investment of approximately $14 million in our facilities and we’re not done as we continue to count on the generosity of our community investing in what we’re doing and how we’re doing it. We are transforming our already beautiful campus as we replace our turf field, renovate the business office, add locker rooms to the Parsley Pavilion, add a concession stand and restrooms to Monahan Field, and continue to update existing spaces like our 430-seat theater in the coming months. It is a great time to be a Bearcat!” 

Lead donors to the project chose to name the building in memory of Mr. Lee Meriwether, a beloved former KCD faculty member who passed away in 2017. Mr. Meriwether was “officially” on faculty at KCD as a chemistry teacher from 1992-2003, however, during retirement he spent many hours on campus substitute teaching, tutoring, and walking his dog, Lally. Mr. Meriwether loved his KCD family, and the KCD family loved Mr. Meriwether.

Mr. Meriwether made a substantial and very meaningful gift to KCD at the very beginning of the Create Together campaign to start a student scholarship fund. The first recipient of the Lee & Connie Meriwether Endowed Scholarship will be named this year.