UMass announces Main Street location for Springfield satellite center
The University of Massachusetts will house its first satellite center in downtown Springfield, a 28,000-square-foot space that will offer classes tailored to the workforce of Western Massachusetts.
“We want to offer programs and degrees that will allow people to find employment as well as grow as individuals,’’ UMass spokeswoman Ann Scales said. “We want to keep our curriculum relevant.’’
The classes offered at the center will be partially based on the city’s needs, with potential subjects including precision manufacturing, public health, and cyber security.
The center, to be located on Main Street in the Tower Square office complex, will open by next fall, officials said. UMass will lease the space — which will house classrooms and faculty offices — for an initial agreement of five years.
“This satellite center will bring vitality to downtown Springfield, and open up new educational and job opportunities for the residents of Springfield and beyond,’’ Governor Deval Patrick said in a statement.
UMass Amherst, located about 25 miles south of Springfield, will develop the academic system at the center and offering administrative support. Classes will be offered at the center and all UMass online programs will also be made available to students, according to a statement from UMass.
The center is part of a larger effort to expand the UMass presence in Springfield. UMass Amherst will move its New England Public Radio network to the city by the spring. The Pioneer Valley Life Sciences Institute, a partnership between UMass Amherst and Springfield’s Baystate Medical Center, is also establishing a health and technology center in Springfield.
UMass officials said the decision to expand into Springfield was carefully conceived, with officials dedicating more than a year of research into whether Springfield not only needed, but wanted, the center.
In focus groups, Springfield residents consistently said the center could offer valuable job skills and remove economic barriers in their city, officials said.
“This is something my administration has been working on for six years,’’ Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said in a statement. “This is an exciting announcement that will bring energy and excitement along with the more eclectic mix we are striving for downtown.’’
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