Barely more than a month after the September opening of school, the Kent School Board of Trustees is turning its attention to completing the $2.3 million Together We Soar campaign. And the response has been electrifying.
“In four short weeks, we have raised more than $240,000 from six donors,” Board Chair Megan B. Owings said. “Alumni, parents, grandparents and friends of the School are rallying to support our plans to fund the final $1 million needed to construct the new Middle School Innovation Center. It’s an exciting project that will include 2,000-square feet of classrooms for Environmental Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics and will benefit every child in the school, not just our middle-schoolers.”
Taylor Goodall, Kent School Class of 1995 and President of Dixon Group, kicked off the $1 million effort. “From a management perspective, I know how important critical thinking skills, such as those developed in the study of math, science, technology, and engineering are to success in the workplace,” Goodall said.
“With these new commitments, $563,000 remains to be raised to complete the project,” Head of School Nancy Mugele said. “We are grateful to everyone who has stepped forward to date and we are eager to broaden our support to reach our goal.
“While the exterior of the Middle School Academic Wing will remain as we know it, the interior will be expanded into bright, inviting spaces housing Humanities and Math classrooms and serve as a meeting place for the Student Government Association, she said.
“The 1,600 square foot pad, poured in 2012 as a placeholder footprint for expansion, will serve as the foundation for new construction on the back of the existing Middle School,” she concluded.
To date, the Together We Soar campaign has raised more than $1.7 million in gifts and pledges, including $820,000 for endowment and $165,000 for facilities maintenance. Design and construction of the new main entrance have been covered by the funds raised.