:: Master Plan
Integrated Sciences Complex
UMass Boston Integrated Sciences Complex: A Vision Framework - January 2009
(Please click Here for Download version)
UMass Boston’s new Integrated Sciences Complex will be a physical centerpiece for the campus, and an unmistakable statement to the community about UMB's identity and direction for the future. Overall, the ISC is expected to provide approximately 200,000 GSF of new high quality space focused on laboratory research and training. This is a historic opportunity for UMB - our first chance to develop a major new academic facility since the opening of the Columbia Point Campus in 1974.
UMass Boston is thus initiating a process of active and systematic consideration of how the Integrated Science Complex will enhance institutional research over the long term. There is broad agreement that it is crucial for our campus to take the best possible advantage of this historic opportunity. UMB's aspirations for the new complex are accordingly grand - to provide laboratory facilities comparable to the best of those by which research universities define themselves; to make doing science a visible part of the learning environment; to enhance the humanity and aesthetics of the campus including our connection to our beautiful waterfront; to make our new space adaptable and flexible so that it continues to serve us well for decades to come; to express in our new complex campus values regarding sustainable design. Science is a discipline with tremendous international reach, which routinely involves collaboration and sharing on a local, national, and global level. As such, it holds a special place in fostering human solidarity through shared scholarly activity.
Our primary commitment is for the Integrated Sciences Complex to signal the maturation of UMass Boston as a research university, and our recognition that first-rate facilities for science are essential to this goal. The UMass Boston Integrated Sciences Complex will therefore provide laboratory spaces for those faculty research and training programs that require modern laboratory facilities for their success. Such faculty-led laboratory-based programs are found in the College of Science and Mathematics, the Department of Psychology in the College of Liberal Arts, and in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
The design of the new space must actively promote interdisciplinary interactions. Interdisciplinarity has become increasingly important for working scientists, and we want this to be reflected in our research spaces. This certainly includes space for new Research Centers and Core Facilities, but our vision is broader - we want to ensure that the Integrated Sciences Complex includes collaborative spaces for researchers who need access to the facilities and resources that will be located there. Interactivity should not be limited as a design priority to only some special facilities; it is vital for the design of all laboratory spaces in the ISC to facilitate interaction and collaboration. Interactivity may be fostered if the ISC is conceived as a collection of “neighborhoods” based on cross-disciplinary themes and facility requirements, rather than using departmental affiliation as the primary organizing principle. But however it is organized, the building will best support the sciences if it is flexible and can be cost-effectively adapted to accommodate constant change in the manner in which scientists interact in performing their work.
We believe that the ISC must include spaces that bring faculty and students together in the regular course of their day, to foster interaction, and to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all. We want the informal space in the complex to support the continuation of learning outside of the classroom or the laboratory. These include places for social interaction such as informal meeting spaces where colleagues and students can interact, places to grab a bite to eat or a cup of coffee, and conference rooms of various sizes that could also host seminars. Function space must be another important consideration, including larger venues that could host local, national or international events or formal announcements, and smaller spaces that might be little more than comfortable seating areas with digital display capabilities. It is also critical that we develop spaces that are flexible and which support team-based, problem-oriented, active-learning pedagogies. We want the design of the new space to maximize the opportunities for all members of the community to engage each other in support of learning and research.
This vision of open, welcoming, and interactive spaces extends to the campus and surrounding community, and to the role of the ISC in promoting science. We believe that the building will best support the sciences if its public spaces are visually connected to the activities inside, successfully balancing transparency and where necessary, security and privacy. Visual transparency and connectivity will further encourage the continued use of UMB facilities by local schools, outreach programs, or community groups, and foster increased awareness within the UMB campus community. Openness and connectivity should also characterize the new landscape around the building as well as its relationship with the harbor front. Opportunities for display of the various work products of ISC student or faculty scientists could become integrated into the building’s common spaces. A space such as a science conservatory or the greenhouse could also be an exciting way to integrate teaching and research, while providing an amenity for the users of the building. These displays could be used as an educational tool, communicating information about the energy use, building systems, or environmental conditions.
Appropriately, the development of the Integrated Sciences Complex will provide a resource to permit the campus to successfully address many elements of the Chancellor's strategic plan. The ISC directly addresses our strategic goal of creating a physical environment that supports teaching, learning, and research. But it has more far-reaching impact. The ISC will help us to increase student access, engagement, and success using state-of-the-art teaching and learning spaces. It will be instrumental in attracting and sustaining outstanding faculty, and will provide the facilities for undergraduate and graduate programs with strong research components. The ISC will thereby help us in many ways to create a high-quality training environment for the diverse population of young scientists who enroll at UMass Boston. (Please click Here for Download version)
Capital Project Advisory Committee Charge
Comprised of stakeholder groups (i.e. faculty and academic users, Facilities, A&F, and student representatives), the Integrated Sciences Complex Capital Advisory Committee is the working body charged with advising and recommending plans for the program development of a new interdisciplinary sciences building for the UMass Boston campus. In developing recommendations for the space program, the Committee will be guided by the following factors:
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The building’s vision and functional relationships and goals as established by the Provost and Deans
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the University’s long range Campus Master Plan
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capital and operating funding constraints
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space planning and architectural design principles and guidelines
Design & Construction Process: The role of the Integrated Sciences Complex Advisory Committee during the various phases of project development and delivery are summarized below:
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Programming: An outside architectural firm experienced in higher educational facility programming and design and hired by the State’s Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) will support and facilitate the work of the Advisory Committee. In general, the Committee will define and recommend the quantity and quality of spaces in the new building and more specifically will articulate, in the abstract, all the spaces that will be needed in the future, for what purposes they will be used, how they will be used and by whom, their functional adjacencies, and specific equipment requirements.
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Building Design: During this phase the Committee will work with the architectural firm hired to design the facility and prepare detailed architectural plans and engineering specifications to clarify program elements and resolve problems, and make value engineering recommendations that may be necessary to stay within project budget limitations.
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Construction: The Committee will meet less frequently during construction to resolve any outstanding program issues and help to ensure that the facility program is realized.
Community Outreach and Participation: The Committee will be expected to consult with their academic and administrative counterparts in an effort to maximize community input and participation throughout the programming and design phases.
Project Cost: Based on available funding, a project budget will be established through the University’s capital budgeting process. The Advisory Committee will be charged with recommending a program for the Integrated Sciences Complex that is commensurate with budgeted levels.