Community celebrates new Kaleideum building in downtown Winston-Salem
Community members gathered around the new Kaleideum building in downtown Winston-Salem for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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Community members gathered around the new Kaleideum building in downtown Winston-Salem for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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City and county leaders stood in line for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new Kaleideum building in downtown Winston-Salem. They watched as the ribbon was flown in and delivered by a drone. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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Robot dogs entertained community members who had gathered outside of the new Kaleideum building in downtown Winston-Salem for a ribbon-cutting this morning. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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After the ribbon-cutting ceremony, guests were invited to explore the new five-story Kaleideum building. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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The multimillion–dollar Kaleideum building is nearly 70,000 square feet, and five stories tall with state-of-the-art exhibits on every floor. On the second floor, there are race tracks for kids to learn about force and motion. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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The third floor of the new Kaleideum building is home to lizards, snakes, birds and other animals in an exhibit all about nature. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
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The storytelling exhibit gives kids many ways to tell their stories, including stop motion animation, shadow puppets, and a stage. AMY DIAZ/WFDD
Local leaders and community members gathered outside of the new Kaleideum building in downtown Winston-Salem for a ribbon-cutting ceremony this morning.
The new building for Kaleideum, the experiential learning museum, has been years in the making.
As city council members, county commissioners, and project organizers gathered to celebrate the finished product in Liberty Plaza, they noted the many hours, days and years of work that made it possible.
Kaleideum CEO Elizabeth Dampier addressed the crowd first.
“It's been a journey. Sometimes it's felt like one of epic proportions," Dampier said. "But through it all, there has been unwavering support.”
The multimillion–dollar building is nearly 70,000 square feet, and five stories tall with state-of-the-art exhibits on every floor.
On the first level, kids can practice their art and design skills. Upstairs, there are race tracks for them to learn about force and motion, and a digital dome for laser shows. The third floor is home to lizards, snakes, birds and other animals in an exhibit all about nature.
“And we are not done yet. There's still a fourth floor," Dampier said. "The fourth floor holds the Try It Studio which encourages all of us to do just that: try new things, whether it's messy art, or an engineering challenge.”
Dampier says the new museum, located in what she calls “the living room” of this community, is meant to be a place for everyone to learn, laugh and play together.
Before opening up the building for guests to explore, the city and county leaders in attendance lined up for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The ribbon was flown in and delivered by a drone, heard buzzing in the sky. Then, two robot dogs made their way to each side of the line and held the ribbon to be cut while the crowd counted down.
The museum will have its grand opening on Saturday, February 17.
Amy Diaz covers education for WFDD in partnership with Report For America. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.
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