Every great build begins with a blueprint. Not the kind rolled up under an arm or smudged with graphite, but the kind that lives in imagination first, a belief that something better is possible and worth designing with intention. At Bal Swan Children’s Center, the blueprint has never been about walls or windows. It has always been about children.
For more than sixty years, Bal Swan has followed a plan rooted in child-centered well-being. Their blueprint maps out how young learners come to understand themselves, connect with others, and grow in confidence. Like any thoughtfully designed plan, it balances structure with flexibility, leaving room for inspiration and curiosity to flourish.
No blueprint comes to life without the right team. In construction, a general contractor orchestrates specialists, electricians, plumbers, painters, each indispensable in bringing a vision to life. At Bal Swan, that same orchestration exists among administrators, teachers, and therapists, professionals whose combined expertise builds something far more meaningful than walls. And like any ambitious project, it requires the belief and support of a community invested in what truly matters.
Today, that collective belief is being called upon for a capital campaign to build a new campus designed to serve more children with greater intention.
This shared vision takes center stage at Blueprints of Brilliance, the Bal Swan Ball, on March 7 at the Omni Interlocken. The evening is less about celebration and more an invitation to see how intentional planning shapes a space where children thrive, how this next phase of building will make that vision feasible and to imagine what’s possible when a community builds together.
Blueprints, however, are only the beginning. What matters most is how a space feels once it is lived in, how it supports growth, builds confidence, and allows each child to be fully seen. At Bal Swan, the results of intentional design aren’t counted in bricks and beams, but in the ripples each child sends out into the world, growing, learning, and inspiring a Broomfield that’s better because they were here.
I am connected:
A Bal Swan experience builds a child’s connection with themselves and with others. A child’s ability to identify their feelings, interests and strengths builds confidence in making friends and being part of a group, which is essential for social creatures like us.
I am well-known:
Young children especially benefit from being accepted and appreciated by their friends, family, and adults. Having their unique attributes and talents recognized by others builds their self-confidence and helps them reach their full potential. It’s been said that the sweetest sound is hearing someone else say your name.
I am capable:
At Bal Swan, all children learn that they have potential and are endowed with natural talents and attributes. Imagine how empowering that is. Visual, auditory, and kinesthetic teaching methods create an environment in which each child has the best opportunity to succeed.
I am creative:
If a child is encouraged to try new ways of doing things or making things, their creativity is sparked and rewarded. At Bal Swan, they learn the value of the process, not just the product, and that true innovation comes from both trial and error, and taking risks. Success builds confidence.
I have value:
When children are publicly and privately supported and celebrated for who they are, they learn that they don’t need to fit a certain mold to be valued or be important. The Bal Swan experience lets them know that they matter very much.
I cherish my friends:
Bal Swan’s classrooms are fully inclusive, meaning that children of all abilities learn together in a strength-based environment. When children are not categorized by ability, they learn to value all their friends. The emphasis on social-emotional learning also helps children navigate social relationships and see each other as friends. They learn the value of both having and being a friend.
Rhyme & Reason
If an outdated building is standing in the way of your updated goals, it’s like forcing square pegs into cylindrical holes. Such a dire problem is hard to dismiss. Experts are needed to solve things like this. And just like the process of building is cool, it’s eerily similar to running a school.