Students, parents, and faculty of Providence Country Day School (PCD) gathered together on a picture-perfect late summer day on Friday, Sept. 18 to celebrate the opening of its first dedicated arts center, which was built to service a rapidly-growing student body for generations to come.

“PCD is 103 years old, and every generation has been handed to this school by people who worked to make it a little stronger. Today, we get to see what that work has made possible,” said Patrick McQuade, a graduate of 2006 and now the President of the PCD Board of Trustees. “Over the last five or six years, enrollment has basically doubled, and we urgently needed more room for our students to grow.”

The 12,000-square-foot facility is named after the late Suzanne Young Murray — a longtime supporter of the school whose husband, Terry Murray Sr.; son, Terry Murray Jr.; and grandson, Kevin McNamara, all graduated from PCD. The building was named in her honor during its construction following the largest philanthropic gift ever awarded to the school earlier in 2026.

“Our mom would be delighted that PCD has a brand new, stunning arts building where current PCD students and students to come will draw, paint, sculpt, perform, and so much more,” said Paula McNamara, daughter of Suzanne Young Murray and a member of the PCD Board of Trustees. “Magic will be happening inside these walls for years to come. She was a wife, parent, and grandparent of PCD Alums, and she was a graduate herself of the Henry Barnard School. She would be thrilled to be a forever part of this cherished school.”

Senator Jack Reed, a friend of the Murray family, was in attendance and provided remarks.

“Sue and Terry Murray, they have spent their lives making sure that they give others a great chance in life to learn, to prosper, to carry forward the ideals of this country. Suzanne was a bright light in the world for those who were lucky to know her,” Reed said. “Her kindness touched all of us and made us all a little better, and we miss her. She lifted people up. She saw within every person the potential to do better, and she wanted to help them to do better. Her efforts towards expanding the arts in education was unparalleled, and it is so fitting for the arts center to be dedicated to her.”

Following the ribbon cutting ceremony — which featured the singing of the National Anthem, the school song, and an impressive arrangement of Natasha Bedingfield’s popular hit, “Unwritten”, each performed by PCD students of various ages — attendees were led into the new facility to take a look.

Once passing through the greeting area, which includes an area for gathering and light dining, you are immediately taken into a large, 2,100-square-foot theater, which will be used in musical and theatrical performances at the school. On either side of the theater are classroom wings, housing chorus, band, and various arts instruction areas. Construction, which began last summer, was reportedly completed on time and on budget.

The Suzanne Young Murray Arts Center, according to a press release from PCD, is a cornerstone of the school’s Centennial Campaign, announced during PCD’s Centennial Gala in June of 2024. The Centennial Campaign is the first comprehensive campaign in school history, with targeted goals of $1.5 million for endowment, $5 million in unrestricted gifts, and $8.5 million for capital projects.

McNamara, during her remarks, concurred that the new center was a vital step towards continuing to provide a high-quality education to a quickly-increasing number of students at PCD.

“When our son graduated in 2016, there were 200 students in the school,” she said. “This month, PCD welcomed over 440 students.”

PCD’s Head of School, Kevin Folan, emphasized the importance of having a space like the new arts center to encourage the next generation of creative professionals.

“This will be a place where students discover talents they didn't know they had. A place where they will paint, perform, create, experiment, take risks, and find their voices. There will be opening nights and final bows, first sketches, and finished works, and probably plenty of mistakes along the way. That is what learning and art, of course, is all about,” he said. “At PCD, our motto reminds us to play the game, to participate fully, to take risks, and to step onto the field rather than watching the sidelines. The arts asks us to do just that. So as we cut this ribbon and open these doors, I hope we think not only about what we have built, but about everything our students will now have the opportunity to create.”