The General Academic Building 2 (GAB2) at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Boston addresses the university's growing enrollment, increased research demands and challenges of aging facilities. Proposed as a five-story, 116,000 GSF building, GAB2 is multi-disciplinary, housing general-use classrooms of various sizes as well as dedicated program space for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences. GAB2 also provides the UMB community with social and dining spaces.

The program was sized to accommodate incremental growth in the university’s enrollment to 18,000 students. Working with UMass Boston steering committees and the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM), NBBJ developed a consensus solution that addresses their goals to provide specialized facilities for the College of Nursing, general tech-enabled classrooms, community spaces and a building that respects the campus issues and context. The resulting program is space efficient, optimizing function within the smallest space required and reflects a thorough process of evaluation, compromise, and consensus.