SCC dedicates new campus, cuts ribbon at Center for Healthy Living

Published: 05/22/2018

St. Charles Community College celebrated the dedication of the Center for Healthy Living on its new campus at Dardenne Creek on May 2. The Center for Healthy Living is home to all of SCC’s current and future nursing and allied health programming as well as a new agriculture program and other workforce training.

The four St. Charles County chambers – Western St. Charles County Chamber of Commerce, Greater St. Charles County Chamber of Commerce, O’Fallon Chamber of Commerce and Industries, and Cottleville/Weldon Spring Chamber of Commerce – joined SCC administrators and Board of Trustee members during the ribbon cutting on May 2.

The event included a ribbon cutting, refreshments, self-guided tours and a speaking program featuring Barbara Kavalier, Ph.D., SCC president; Pamela Cilek, SCC Board of Trustees president; John Bookstaver, Ph.D., vice president for academic affairs and enrollment management; Cory Baum, SCC nursing student; and Amy Koehler, SCC campus dean/dean of nursing and allied health.

SCC president Barbara Kavalier, Ph.D., addresses the crowd at the Center for Healthy Living and Dardenne Creek Campus dedication ceremony on May 2.

Pamela Cilek, SCC Board of Trustees president, addresses the crowd at the dedication ceremony on May 2.

“We are extremely excited to work collaboratively with community leaders to change policies that bring healthy living and healthier communities within reach,” Koehler said. “Everything in the new building has been and will be purposeful, supported by research and well designed.” 

According to the dedication planning team during the self-guided tour, community members learned the ins-and-outs of the building from the people who know it best. Students and faculty were stationed around the building to explain how each space is specifically used. 

“The Center for Healthy Living provides the room necessary to grow and expand all of our healthcare programs,” Koehler continued. “It is a beautiful environment where students, faculty and community members are working together to train healthcare providers in the most effective way.” 

The four St. Charles County chambers – Western St. Charles County Chamber of Commerce, Greater St. Charles County Chamber of Commerce, O’Fallon Chamber of Commerce and Industries, and Cottleville/Weldon Spring Chamber of Commerce – joined SCC administrators and Board of Trustee members during the ribbon cutting, as the Center at the SCC-Dardenne Creek Campus is anticipated to have a large impact on the county’s workforce.

SCC made history when the college closed on the property in February 2017. The 69,000-square-foot building was the former site of Barat Academy. It was purchased by Lindenwood in September 2012, and SCC leased approximately 26,000 square feet of the building’s space for its Nursing and Allied Health program under terms of the colleges’ partnership agreement from 2012-2017. The SCC Board of Trustees approved the purchase contract on of the building at their Dec. 5, 2016, meeting, and SCC finalized the purchase of the property for $9.45 million on Feb. 24, 2017.

The SCC-Dardenne Creek Campus serves as the college's first additional campus and was named after Dardenne Creek, which flows between the two campuses.