Early childhood education center becoming reality

A June groundbreaking ceremony for the R.J. McElroy Hall on the Allen College campus in Waterloo marked a milestone for an early childhood education program operated through the Regents' Center for Early Developmental Education at UNI.

The 13,000 square-foot building will house the Freeburg Early Childhood Education Program, operated by the Regents' Center, in partnership with the Waterloo Community Schools, Allen Health Systems and Allen College.

The building project and collaboration came to fruition through a $1 million gift to the UNI Foundation, to assist with the operating costs of the facility, from Janice Freeburg Cannon of Rancho Santa Fe, CA. Cannon received a two year degree from UNI, then Iowa State Teachers College, in 1957 and taught second grade early in her career.

A subsequent $1 million gift from the R.J. McElroy Trust put the project on firm ground. Additional gifts for the project have come from the AEGON USA Charitable Foundation, the Community Foundation-Leighty Fund, the John Deere Foundation, the Mansfield Charitable Foundation, HON Industries and the Minnie M. Crippen Foundation.

The early childhood program will serve 66 children, ages three through first grade, from various ethnic and economic backgrounds, as well as children with disabilities. The building will include four classrooms, observation rooms, a family resource center, teachers' offices, a multi-purpose room, kitchen, library and restrooms. The project is designed by StruXture Architects and the general contractor is Prairie Construction, both of Waterloo.