Umass Lowell establishes new Health and Social Sciences Building

UMass Lowell broke ground today on a new $40 million, 69,000-square-foot academic building that will be home to three of the university's most popular majors in health and social sciences and represents the second major construction project underway on campus.

The Health and Social Sciences Building - which will support more than 800 construction and related jobs - will help UMass Lowell make room for its growing student body, which has seen a 30 percent increase in undergraduates since 2007. The building will be home to the criminal justice, nursing and psychology programs.

Speakers at the groundbreaking included Massachusetts Secretary of Education Paul Reville, Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) Commissioner Carole Cornelison, UMass Lowell Chancellor Marty Meehan, local and state elected officials, and Djwan Scott, a nursing major, and Michael Reid, student trustee.

"The students who will study in this new building will help advance a vibrant society," Meehan said. "So many of our students are committed to making a difference, both while they are here and after they graduate. They help our communities thrive. We salute our students and the faculty who inspire them."

The building will house classrooms, faculty offices, specialized labs, simulated hospital rooms and other health-care settings, and social sciences research space. Other features include: conference space where students and faculty will collaborate with partners on experiential education and other projects; an atrium lobby promoting faculty-student interaction; sustainable design elements such as energy-efficient climate controls, use of natural light to reduce electricity consumption and water-efficient landscaping that will not require irrigation.

The architect is Cambridge Seven Associates Inc. Gilbane Building Co. is the general contractor and DCAM, the state's real estate and construction arm, is managing the project.

The Health and Social Sciences Building will have the capacity to serve 900 students and 140 faculty members and, when completed in 2013, will free up space in existing buildings for other departments to expand.

The groundbreaking marks the start of the second major construction project at UMass Lowell; the new Emerging Technologies and Innovation Center is underway on North Campus. While South Campus buildings have undergone renovations over the years, the Health and Social Sciences Building is the first new construction from the ground up since the mid-1970s.

"These two buildings symbolize a revitalization of UMass Lowell's campus complex on both sides of the Merrimack River. The simultaneous projects are part of the first major physical transformation of the university in more than three decades," said Meehan.

In addition to the new buildings, UMass Lowell has made a series of property acquisitions since 2009: the UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center, the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell and University Crossing, formerly St. Joseph's Hospital. UMass Lowell plans to construct two new parking garages and a residence hall.

Source: UMass Lowell