FY2014 - FY2018 Capital Investment Plan
Report - Investment Category - Higher Education

The Patrick Administration is committed to building an affordable, world-class system of public higher education in Massachusetts because the continued success of the Commonwealth's knowledge-based economy depends on a highly educated and well-skilled workforce.

The Commonwealth's public higher education system, which serves approximately 260,000 students, is comprised of 29 campuses divided into three segments: 15 community colleges; 9 state universities; and 5 University of Massachusetts (UMass) campuses. In response to the alarming capital deficiencies at many of these institutions when he took office in 2007, Governor Patrick dramatically increased planned investments in higher education capital projects in the first five-year capital investment plan in FY08, and, working with the Legislature, obtained passage of a $2.2 B higher education bond bill in 2008 as a key component of his 10-year education reform initiative.  Construction is underway or completed at 26 of the 29 public campuses and all campuses are planned to have projects by the end of fiscal year 2014.

The following graph reflects the Administration's estimated capital investment in higher education capital projects over the next five years as compared to fiscal years 2007 and 2013 spending on higher education projects.

Administration Accomplishments to Date

• Construction is complete on seven major state university and community college facilities that provide over 602,500 square feet of new or renovated space. Additionally, design or construction is underway for another 579,000 square feet, bringing a total of more than 1 M square feet to the Commonwealth’s state universities and community colleges.
• Completed projects include: 
  • A new science and mathematics center at Bridgewater State University that demolished outdated space, modernized existing space and expanded the facility to provide new state-of-the-art labs;
  • A new $34 M Allied Health Building on North Shore Community College’s Danvers campus is the Commonwealth’s first building designed to achieve Zero Net Energy performance and provides cutting-edge learning and simulation labs for the Allied Health Programs;
  • The $25.2 M library building on the main campus of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy was completed in 2011. The building contains library stacks, reading rooms and ancillary spaces for student support.  The building also houses several unique features tailored to the needs of the campus’s students.  These features include a simulator of a ship’s bridge and a geothermal well that simulates a heating & cooling system. 
  • Expansion of the main building at Greenfield Community College, which enlarged the library and provided a new accessible main entrance;
  • The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts’ New Center for Science and Innovation is now complete and held a groundbreaking in October 2013.  This $40 M facility consolidated all of MCLA’s science programs into one central location.  The facilities that it replaced did not meet the 21st century needs of integrated, hands-on discovery approaches required under the STEM workforce initiative.  The new facility includes labs for biology, environmental studies, chemistry and physics, as well as a green house, a roof garden and an outdoor classroom; and
  • The $74 M Library and Learning Commons at Salem State University was completed in the summer of 2013 and strengthens the academic heart of the campus by providing space where students come together to learn in an innovative and interdisciplinary manner supported by state-of-the-art technology and traditional library services strengthens the academic heart of the campus by providing space where students come together to learn in an innovative and interdisciplinary manner supported by state-of-the-art technology and traditional library services.
• The Commonwealth has supported UMass through partnerships with the University of Massachusetts Building Authority, the Life Sciences Center and private contributions to build or renovate over 1 M square feet of academic and research space.  Completed projects include:
  • A new life sciences research facility at UMass Amherst that highlights the Governor’s focus on using Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) as an essential tool for academic, workforce and industry development;
  • A new Health and Social Sciences Building on UMass Lowell’s South Campus, bringing the University to the forefront of academic delivery models with state-of-the-art teaching spaces;
  • Through Governor Patrick’s Life Sciences Initiative, the Sherman Center at the UMass Medical School in Worcester and UMass Lowell’s Emerging Technology and Innovation Center have been constructed; and
  • A modernized and expanded state-of-the-art Clare T. Carney Library at UMass Dartmouth provides students with access to information through advanced technology and is a center of student life and activity.

FY14 Highlights

Community Colleges

• This plan includes the announcement of an unprecedented number of new community college projects, which affirms the Administration’s commitment to investing in community colleges that provide students with strong educational foundations and relevant workforce training opportunities that will prepare them for success in the local job market or further academic study.

  The new FY14 community college projects are:

  • Massasoit Community College’s new Allied Health and Science Building will commence with the purchase of a facility and proceed quickly into design this fiscal year.  The project will fund the College’s first new building on the Brockton campus since the mid-1970s and will house the college’s nursing, respiratory care and radiological technology programs.  Currently, the college is at full capacity for many of its laboratory health career space and several programs are located within buildings that are intended for other uses;
  • Building “19” renovations on the campus of Springfield Technical Community College will begin commence and will look to address the campus’s longer term needs;
  • Cape Cod Community College’s $36 M New Science Building project will commence.  With this project, the Commonwealth will have invested capital funding in STEM at each campus across the community college system.  The current Science Building dates back to 1970 and is in dire need of replacement.  This new Science Building will serve as an innovation center and address the needs of the Commonwealth’s growing STEM workforce;
  • The $20.3 M Holyoke Community College renovation of Building “G” is currently in study and will address water infiltration issues as well as explore possible expansion.  Currently, the water infiltration is endangering the computer labs within the building.  An addition to Building “G” is also within the scope of the project, which may provide a single, convenient location for student services on campus, a renovated and expanded bookstore and new programing within their culinary arts program;
  • Expansion of North Shore Community College’s Lynn Campus will commence design on a $20.7 M campus expansion and modernization of the existing McGee Building to accommodate student services and classrooms;
  • A $7 M renovation of Northern Essex Community College’s Spurk Building on the Haverhill Campus will commence in FY14;
  • Quinsigamond Community College’s $15.9 M new General Academic Building project meets the campus’s need for additional academic space and will be built adjacent to the Science and Technology Building.  This project will complete the upgrade of QCC’s instructional resources by providing 16 new classrooms designed to maximize flexibility and address rapidly evolving instructional technologies and approaches, including break-out, shared, and informal space;
  • Middlesex Community College’s new $24 M General Academic Building on the Bedford Campus will commence in FY14, addressing space issues and enhancing the central quadrangle.  The project will create additional academic space and faculty offices;
  • In addition, the Administration is setting aside funding for additional community college projects in urban centers to begin in FY14.
• The Administration has reaffirmed its commitment to make a Framingham campus for Massachusetts Bay Community College a reality.  Launched last year as a study, a new Allied Health Academic Building will be a cornerstone of a new campus in downtown Framingham.  This project is moving into design in FY14. 
• Northern Essex Community College’s new Allied Health Building will be completed in downtown Lawrence. 
• Berkshire Community College’s $21.2 M renovation of Hawthorne and Melville Halls was announced in last year’s capital investment plan.  This project encompasses renovations to both Hawthorne and Melville Halls, including classroom modernization, science lab upgrades and exterior masonry repairs.  Both of these buildings are academic halls that house academic space for programs ranging from allied health and human services to engineering and computer information systems.  This is the first investment in these buildings since they were built. 
• Quinsigamond Community College’s $23.1 M Science and Technology Building modernization capital project serves many campus needs, including: providing modern science and technology instructional space; creating home bases for the Honors Center; and the construction of the Center for Academic Excellence.

State Colleges and Universities

• New in FY14, Salem State University’s renovation and expansion of Meier Hall will significantly upgrade the facility’s science labs to meet 21st century higher education and workforce needs.  The current labs, having been constructed in 1962 and 1968, have gone through 40 years without upgrades. 
• Hemenway Hall at Framingham State University, when finished, will create a new, five-story science laboratory. The addition will provide students and faculty with state-of-the-art teaching labs to train tomorrow’s science teachers, as well as increased accessibility on campus. FY14 will see an expanded scope to this project to keep pace with other leading institutions of higher education that demand more research space, specialized classrooms and the ability to take advantage of developments in technology.
• Construction on Worcester State’s new $50.7 M Academic and Wellness Center will commence in 2013 and is slated to open in 2016.  The Commonwealth is contributing $25.2 M in bond funding towards this project.  This facility will replace the existing gymnasium that dates from 1958 and was intended to serve just 400 students, which is only 6.6% of the school’s current enrollment of 6,000.  The new Wellness Center will feature athletic space, instructional space, studio space and community space. The facility will be used by student athletes and the general student population, and will it support educational programs, community programs, athletic programs and student fitness.  The new Wellness Center will also be the first step in implementing Worcester State’s 2007 Master Plan, which will radically change the image of the campus.  Currently seen as a school surrounded by surface parking lots, the campus will become a traditional New England campus with a central quadrangle.
• The renovation of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts’ Bowman Hall is underway and is now progressing rapidly since the opening of the New Center for Science and Innovation allows for additional classroom swing space. This $14 M renovation will result in a complete makeover of the building and construction is set to begin this winter.  An art gallery will welcome students, faculty and visitors as they enter the building and computer science and mathematics labs will provide students a modern workspace to refine their robotics, hardware and software development skills. 

University of Massachusetts

• The FY14-18 Capital Investment Plan funds three new UMass projects across three campuses, underlining the Administration’s commitment to grow the Commonwealth’s knowledge-based economy by developing a highly-skilled workforce through a world-class public higher education system: 
  • A $51 M modernization of UMass Amherst’s Morrill Science Center will continue efforts undertaken by the Commonwealth and the University to address critical upgrades to the science facilities on campus.  This project will replace and upgrade aging mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems that support wet and dry research labs, offices, and lab support facilities;
  • A $55 M new Academic Building at UMass Dartmouth will begin in FY14 in conjunction with updating their master plan.  This space will allow the campus to respond to its increased growth in enrollment and will relocate several academic programs which are currently being housed in leased space.  It will also enable the campus to respond to modern trends in higher education that demand more research space, specialized classrooms and the ability to take advantage of developments in technology;
  • A $20 M investment in UMass Lowell’s Perry Hall engineering building will modernize the facility and provide high quality, efficient research and instructional space in the heart of UMass Lowell’s traditional engineering core.  This will create more usable space and improve connectivity between buildings.
• The $182 M Integrated Science Center at UMass Boston will be completed in 2014.  This center will assemble all University departments involved in laboratory research, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and providing over 220,000 gross square feet of state-of-the-art teaching and research labs for the University’s faculty and student body. 
• UMass Dartmouth’s $53 M Marine Sciences Facility will consolidate UMass Dartmouth’s School of Marine Science and Technology (SMAST) faculty and researchers in a central location and will expand laboratory space to support current teaching pedagogy and research methodologies.  This project includes space for the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) in order to maximize synergy between scientists in the coastal city of New Bedford.
• Design will begin on the new management building for the Manning School of Business at UMass Lowell, which leverages approximately $10 M in private donations to support the $35 M project.
• The Administration’s commitment to building growth and opportunity across the Commonwealth through education investments is exemplified throughout this plan.  To recognize a commitment to several projects that do not start this year, the following table indicates bond cap funding scheduled in FY14-18 for the following higher education projects: