W. Cecil Steward was born in Pampa to farming parents, Lois Maness Steward and Weldon C. Steward. From age six until the completion of public school he worked with his parents and other extended family members to raise wheat and other farm produce in several locations in Pampa. He graduated from Pampa High School with the Class of ’52.
Cecil was active in music and art throughout his public school years. He joined the Woodrow Wilson Elementary School band in the first grade, making valiant attempts to play the clarinet – even though his fingers were not large enough to cover the keys and his feet would not touch the floor from the chair. After such an inauspicious beginning, he participated in bands and orchestras for each of the twelve years in the Pampa public school system and became drum major of the Pampa Harvester Band in his junior year in high school. Later he continued his interests in music and marching band formations by becoming a member of the Texas Aggie Marching Band.
While in Pampa High School he developed a strong interest in architecture under the mentorship of Myles Morgan through his teaching of industrial art classes. Cecil has often given credit for his interest and success in architecture to the opportunity provided at the high school level to synthesize his experiences in farming and music and art into a career, a set of values, and a lifestyle. In 1952 he entered a five-year professional curriculum to study architecture at Texas A&M University. While studying at A&M he became a Company Commander of a unit of the Corps of Cadets and in 1955-56 led the unit to top honors for all Corps units in academics, athletics, and military drill and ceremony. In his studies of architecture he won several design competitions and awards, among which was a scholarship to attend the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Fontainebleau, France for the summer months of 1956. Not only was this his first opportunity for international travel, but also it was a grand opportunity to take his new bride, Mary Jane Nedbalek, of Bryan, Texas to Paris and find new shared experiences.
Cecil graduated from Texas A&M with a Bachelor of Architecture degree, a military commission in the US Air Force and a commitment for three years of active service. Following military service he received a fellowship to attend Columbia University for Studies toward his Master of Science in Architecture degree.
Today, Cecil Steward is an internationally recognized architect, educator, and sustainable communities developer. He has had a career in the education of architects and planners for more than 40 years. Eleven years on the faculty and the Associate Dean’s position at Texas A&M prepared him to be the first Dean of Architecture at the University of Nebraska for 27 years. He is the founder and President/CEO of the Joslyn Castle Institute For Sustainable Communities in Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska.
Awards and recognitions have come to him frequently from global settings for his service in these roles. He is the first career educator, and the first graduate of Texas A&M to be elected national president of the American Institute of Architects (1991-92). He is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects and he is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the Federacion Collegios Architectos de Mexico, the Architectural Society of China, the Japanese Institute of Architects, The Association of Siamese Architects/Thailand, and the Kazakhstan Union of Architects. He has been invited to judge numerous national and international design competitions; the most frequent one of note being the Memorial to the September 11 Flight 93.
As recognition for his career and contributions to education and practice he has been awarded the Honorary Doctor of Humans letters degree from Drury College, Springfield, Missouri, The Gold Medal for Architecture from AIA Nebraska, and the national Topaz Medallion for Excellence in Architectural Education by the national AIA and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.
“Retirement” is filled with non-profit local, regional, national, and international efforts to enlist more support for making our towns, villages, and cities places that are green, prosperous, safe, attractive, and sustainable.
Cecil and Mary Jane have to children. Daughter, Karen Steward is an artist who shows her work both independently and in-group show in the Los Angeles area. She is also a member of the Art Directors’ Guild for Film and Television, and is currently art directing the new Fox television series “Bones”. Son, Craig Steward lives near Lincoln with his wife Kristi and daughter Wesley. Craig is a cabinet/furniture maker of high demand, and he owns his millwork business in Lincoln, Nebraska.