Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology Moving to Newton

Editor's note: The following is a press release.

Leaders of the (MSPP) have signed a lease with an option to purchase a six-story, 83,000-square-foot building at 1 Wells Avenue in Newton. Their plan is to transform the building into a 21st century learning environment and consolidate all the school's programs under one roof.

The school currently occupies two buildings in West Roxbury, at 221 Rivermoor Street and 208 VFW Parkway, and the MSPP Freedman Center on Child and Family Development is at 225 Nevada Street in Newton.

The move to this new home in August 2012 will mark the culmination of a decade of growth that has more than quadrupled the student body, which is shifting from regional to more national and international in demographics. It has also increased the number of degree programs from one to eleven, the operating budget from $2.2 million to $20 million and the administrative staff and faculty from 42 to 137.

“This is a very exciting time for us,” says MSPP President Nicholas Covino, who considers the move to a new building as a transformational move that offers a dignified environment to match the dignity of the educational and social service work that happens at MSPP every day. “There is nothing more dramatic as giving a new home to a vibrant learning community,” he says.

To create a new home that will keep pace with the ongoing evolution of MSPP, the school has enlisted the expertise and guidance of Gensler, a global architecture, design and planning firm that specializes in educational and workplace environments. In recent years, Gensler has conducted worldwide research on trends in these settings, winning numerous awards for creating enlightened places to work and learn.

“Everyone at MSPP has been involved in the planning process,” says Todd Dundon, Project Architect at Gensler. His design team held focus groups with administrators, students, staff, board members and friends of the school, to develop a wish list.

“We asked big sky questions like; ‘What do you want the school to look like in five, 10, 20 years?’  We asked them to think not just quantitatively, but also qualitatively,” he says. From that process six elements emerged as essential, including a sense of community; a mix of functional, flexible and technology-rich spaces; a sustainable environment with access to natural light: an open and airy work environments: a connection to nature and the community: and a professional learning environment.

“The result is open and inviting and communal,” according to MSPP Vice President and CFO Patrick Capobianco, commenting on the designs. Capobianco has been searching for half a decade for the right place for the growing graduate school to relocate.

According to Dundon, “Learning happens in many places on campus, beyond the classroom. That is why we’ve created a mix of open and private spaces that feel like living rooms, cafes, and study areas, all equipped with white boards and other technology interspersed with classrooms.  We believe this will encourage both structured and informal learning.  A student can walk out of a classroom and bump into a professor, and, if they choose to sit and talk, they’ll also have technology available wherever they end up meeting,” he says.