Building Our Campus
UMass Boston’s new Integrated Sciences Complex – a 220,000-square-foot, $185-million steel-and-glass facility – will be the first new academic building on the university's Columbia Point campus since it opened in 1974. Adjacent to the Quinn Administration Building and the Healey Library, its prominent location will make an immediate welcoming impact on those arriving via UMass Boston’s main entrance.
The Integrated Sciences Complex will position UMass Boston to move forward with its strategic vision to increase the breadth and sophistication of its research enterprise while honoring its historical commitment to teaching excellence. The new building will advance student and faculty access, engagement, and success with state-of-the-art research, teaching, and training laboratories.
When it opens in mid-2014, the new facility will bring together several science research programs from across the university into an interdisciplinary academic hub. Biology; Chemistry; Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences; Physics; and Psychology research programs from the College of Science and Mathematics and the College of Liberal Arts will move into the building.
Enhancing Research Activities
In addition, the sciences complex will enhance UMass Boston’s research activities by becoming home to two new research centers: the Developmental Sciences Research Center and the Center for Personalized Cancer Therapy, a partnership between UMass Boston and the Dana Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. The sciences complex will also feature four introductory biology teaching labs.
The Integrated Sciences Complex will demonstrate UMass Boston’s commitment to environmental stewardship by incorporating sustainable design measures such as solar hot-water panels to convert sunlight to energy; reduced-flow fixture to conserve water; high-efficiency, low-emissions boilers; and high-performance air-handling units, ductwork, and lighting.
LEED-Certified
The campus will seek Silver certification for the Integrated Sciences Complex from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. This will make the Integrated Sciences Complex the first LEED-certified building on the UMass Boston campus.
To accommodate the changing needs of the scientific community, Boston-based architectural firm Goody Clancy designed the facility to promote interaction and collaboration across disciplines, including:
- Café, lounge, and lobby space
- Exhibition and event space
- A multidisciplinary Sandbox lab designed for research and capstone projects
When entering campus, you can see the Integrated Sciences Complex under construction adjacent to the Quinn Administration Building and the Healey Library.
