St. Louis, MO—S. M. Wilson joined the Jefferson City School District to celebrate the completion of its new Jefferson City Early Childhood Center (JCECC) with a Grand Opening Ceremony. The event welcomed school district officials, community leaders and local residents to tour the new facility.
“We were so thrilled to welcome our community members and partners to tour the newly-completed Early Childhood Center,” said JC Schools Superintendent Bryan McGraw. “S. M. Wilson has been an incredible partner, and we are so appreciative to them and all of the individuals who worked so hard to construct this incredible facility.”
The new 70,000-square-foot Early Childhood Center increases the district’s preschool enrollment capacity from 150 to approximately 400 students. The existing Early Childhood Center will now undergo significant renovations and maintenance upgrades to become the new home of the Jefferson City Academic Center.
“Working with the Jefferson City School District has been a great partnership,” said Emily Klackner, Project Manager at S. M. Wilson. “Watching this project come to life from the ground up has been an incredible experience—not only for our team, but also through the eyes of the teachers, staff and students. The entire project team is very excited for the district to begin using this new facility.”
JCECC is the largest project in the school district’s Kids FIRST zero-tax-rate-increase bond issue, which voters approved in April 2023. This two-phase bond initiative includes new construction, renovations, additions, technology upgrades and districtwide maintenance enhancements. Other Kids FIRST projects include technology upgrades for all Pre-K through 8th-grade classrooms (replacing outdated smart boards with interactive touchscreens), extensive renovations to both Lewis & Clark and Thomas Jefferson Middle Schools, expansion of the Nichols Career Center campus and its course offerings, replacement of aging sound and lighting equipment at the Miller Performing Arts Center and several other improvements throughout the district.
S. M. Wilson served as the construction manager, with Architects Alliance as the district’s design partner.
Since Missouri adopted the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) delivery method in 2016, S. M. Wilson has developed a robust portfolio of CMAR K-12 building programs. The firm has partnered with districts such as Ladue School District, Pattonville School District, Hallsville R-IV School District, Winfield R-IV School District and Columbia Public Schools. With more than $2 billion in education construction experience and a commitment to building strong relationships while delivering exceptional client service, S. M. Wilson has become a trusted leader in CMAR K-12 construction.