Nick’s Kids Luncheon Honoring Teachers Offers First-Look at New Saban Center Design

The final shape of Tuscaloosa's Saban Center, an interactive learning campus coming to downtown Tuscaloosa later this decade, became clearer on Tuesday with the release of a new rendering during a luncheon hosted by Nick and Terry Saban.

Each year, the former head coach and first lady of the Crimson Tide football program and their Nick's Kids Foundation honor area educators at the Teacher Excellence Award Luncheon, and Tuesday marked the 13th such ceremony.

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The Sabans honored 70 teachers from schools in Tuscaloosa and Tuscaloosa County, but also from the surrounding western Alabama regions of Fayette, Greene, Sumter, Hale and Perry Counties.

Each teacher recognized on Tuesday received a certificate from the Foundation and $500 in gift cards for the holiday season.

“We are honored to recognize these amazing teachers at the 13th Annual Teacher Excellence Awards Luncheon. As a teacher myself, I know how hard they work,” said Terry Saban.

The luncheon also served to debut brand-new renderings of the Saban Center, a more than $80 million learning campus soon to be under construction in Tuscaloosa’s River District.

The Saban Center will include space for the Tuscaloosa Children’s Theatre and Ignite, which was formerly known as Children’s Hands-On Museum, and early plans for the space to move into a renovated Tuscaloosa News headquarters on Nick's Kids Avenue.

Governor Kay Ivey pledged $25 million to the project, though, and the scope of the Saban Center dramatically increased to include a STEM learning hub for teachers and students across the state.

Other new partnerships will connect the Saban Center to the Alabama Water Institute, Shelton State Community College, Stillman College, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and more.

"The Saban Center is a passion project for Mrs. Terry and me,” said Coach Nick Saban. “We’re building Saban Center to support these teachers and all the teachers in Alabama. Education provides opportunities, and our life’s work is about providing opportunities for kids. Saban Center will allow us to continue that mission, providing opportunities for students, teachers, families and visitors to Alabama for generations to come.”

Instead of renovating the 20-year-old newspaper building, it is being demolished to make way for the Saban Center.

The new renderings show what the new construction could look like - bidding for the project will be held next spring, with a groundbreaking planned in April 2025 and the completed Center expected to open to the public in 2027.

“It has been an honor to collaborate with Saban Center stakeholders on the design of this project, a place which will inspire visitors of all ages,” said Malcolm Holzman of the architecture firm Steinberg Hart. “Home to a multitude of interactive and energizing STEM, arts and cultural environments, the Saban Center will feature curved facades crafted of recycled Alabama marble, at once enclosing and presenting these engaging activities to the world beyond its walls."

“The Saban family’s commitment to education is unparalleled, and Saban Center will serve as a testament to their transformative impact not only in Tuscaloosa but throughout the entire state of Alabama," said Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox. "The City of Tuscaloosa is profoundly grateful for their vision and generosity. We eagerly anticipate seeing these remarkable renderings brought to life, as well as the lasting benefits the Saban Center will bring to students, educators and families across our state and beyond."

For updates on the project as they're made available, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.