The Saban Center announced a partnership with Shelton State Community College June 18, adding to its portfolio of connections to other national and local organizations. SSCC will help create programming for STEM exhibits at the center’s buildings and create additional opportunities with the Tuscaloosa Children’s Theater.
Jonathan Koh, SSCC’s president, said that the college’s partnership with the center would help the college benefit children in Tuscaloosa.
“We are thrilled to have an opportunity to impact lives in our community beginning at a young age,” Koh said in a press release. “The collaboration and partnerships within our community these days are very strong, and projects such as this allow us to build on that strong foundation in a way that maximizes our impact on those who live, work and play in Tuscaloosa and the surrounding communities.”
The Saban Center is set to open in June 2027, and it will host educational programs for children in the Tuscaloosa area. Brandt LaPish, Director of Development at the center, said that it will be built on the site of the Tuscaloosa News building and that the project is slated to break ground next summer.
LaPish said that the center will be an interactive campus that includes the Tuscaloosa Children’s Theatre, the State Alabama STEM Hub and the Children’s Hand-On Museum, which will be reimagined as IGNITE.
“The Saban Center is excited to partner with Shelton State Community College – the premier training entity for West Alabama’s automotive, manufacturing, construction and other industrial sectors,” wrote Mayor Walt Maddox in a statement.
He continued, “Through this partnership, we will collaborate to create exhibits at the Saban Center related to STEM and career technologies like robotics, programming, electronics and more to prepare West Alabama’s future workforce for a technology-driven future.”
The Saban Center has previously partnered with several other educational institutions, companies and research groups. The center’s website lists the Alabama Power Foundation, Coca-Cola United, Mercedes-Benz, The University of Alabama, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as some of its other major strategic partners.
LaPish said that the University of Alabama has worked to help create exhibits and programs for IGNITE.
Nick and Terry Saban have been involved in the designing and fundraising of the center, and they see it as a legacy project to promote education in Alabama, Lapish said.
