ST. LOUIS, MO – Construction is underway on the William J. Harrison Education Center, a new $10.5 million education and jobs training center in St. Louis, Missouri operated by St. Louis Community College.

Kwame Building Group (KWAME) of St. Louis is construction manager and owner’s representative for the project. Construction on the two-story building began in June and will be completed in 2010. The architect is KAI, also of St. Louis.

The 30,265-square-foot education center will focus on computer technology, allied health, environmental sciences and workforce training and development. The new facility will house classrooms with state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment, an art studio, science and computer labs, a multi-purpose community room, a bookstore, common areas, an outreach center and administrative offices.

“Holding the budget on this project is important,” said Ronald Robert of KWAME. “We are confident this center will be a highly functional and sustainable addition to the St. Louis Community College system and to the North St. Louis community.”

The new facility at 3140 Cass Avenue replaces the existing William J. Harrison Northside Education Center on Natural Bridge Road. The “green” project will be built seeking gold certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

Environmentally friendly elements will include energy-efficient heating and cooling, use of recyclable materials in construction, and source controls of indoor chemicals and pollutants. This is the second project in which KWAME has teamed with St. Louis Community College to obtain LEED certification on a campus construction project. KWAME also served as project manager on the new St. Louis Community College-Wildwood campus, which was awarded LEED gold certification in 2008.

The William J. Harrison Education Center originally opened in 1994 to provide education services to a previously under-served population in north St. Louis City. The center has educated more than 6,000 people a year and partners with more than 100 community-based organizations, such as Grace Hill Neighborhood Services, Mother’s Way Career Counseling, Employment Connections, ARCHS and St. Patrick’s Center. The new facility, located near Vashon High School and the Clyde C. Miller Academy in the JeffVanderLou neighborhood, will be an important resource for local youth.


Kwame Building Group is a pure program and construction management firm providing estimating, scheduling, project planning, value engineering and other project management services as an independent advocate for owners and developers. Public and private sector projects include educational facilities, major airports nationwide, light-rail systems, hospitals and government facilities. KWAME is headquartered in St. Louis with division offices in Dallas, Pittsburgh, Seattle, New Orleans, Oklahoma City and Phoenix. For more information, visit www.kwamebuildinggroup.com or call 314.862.5344.