Simmons welcomes the SOM to the main campus

By: Kelly Bell

Posted: 2/5/09

This semester, the Simmons School of Management (SOM) moved into a new building on the academic campus. SOM Dean Deborah Merrill-Sands described the move as "the most exciting change that's happened to the School of Management in decades."

Previously the Simmons management program was divided between two separate campuses: the graduate students and faculty at 409 Commonwealth Ave. and the undergraduate students and faculty in a wing of the Main College Building (MCB). Now the two branches are together in the new, environment-friendly building.

"Already, you can see new connections, new kinds of research, new collaborations, and just an energy among the faculty that's really phenomenal," Merrill-Sands said.

Merrill-Sands said she expects the building to give the management programs more of a presence on campus, and hopes more undergraduate students will consider management as a major. Last month the MBA program brought in its largest January-cycle class ever.

"The building is a powerful brand statement, and really reflects all the work we've been doing in strengthening both the undergraduate management program and the MBA program," said Merrill-Sands.

The new building is the first at Simmons to be built in accordance with the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. The LEED standards are a set of sustainability specifications that set the national standard for high-performance, sustainable, and energy-efficient buildings. Simmons has applied for LEED Silver certification and, if approved, will be the fourth highest education institution in the Boston area to have a building certified at the Silver level or higher.

"I think we will absolutely meet all the standards for the silver level certification that we're going for, and we'll certainly exceed it," Merrill-Sands said.

The new building consumes 34 percent less water and 38 percent less energy than a non-certified, like-sized building would. Some features include dual-flush toilets (flush up for liquid waste, down for solid waste), bike racks, electronically controlled heating and cooling systems, and recyclable collection areas throughout the building. Ten percent of the content of all building materials were from recycled materials, and 92 percent of the construction waste was either recycled or reused.

"I believe really strongly that we will not address successfully issues with the environment and climate change unless business plays a huge role. Most of the positive changes that have happened in the [United States] have actually been driven by business," said Merrill-Sands.

Merrill-Sands said she hopes the new green building will inspire Simmons women to take an active role in environmental sustainability.

"I want our students to graduate thinking that [environmental sustainability] is a key responsibility that they'll have as professionals and leaders in their organizations," she said. "I think the building speaks to people everyday about that importance."

Now that the undergraduate and MBA programs are in one building, some changes will be made to the programs.

"The main thing that we're looking at is how to get better integration between the two programs," said Merrill-Sands.

The new building will provide better opportunities for networking and mentoring between MBA and undergraduate students.

"We'll be much more focused on creating internship opportunities for both groups [and] I think we'll be able to give better career support to our undergraduate students because we are very sophisticated in that at the MBA level," Merrill-Sands said.

Merrill-Sands also said that a new strategy will be introduced to the SOM that stresses the importance of leadership, ethics, sustainability, and entrepreneurship.

"We're going to be strengthening that at the undergraduate level. We've been very successful at the MBA level," she said.

Undergraduate students have expressed their interest and excitement over the new building.

"The new building is really a remarkable advantage for Simmons and Simmons' students," said sophomore Meredith Wish.

Even students who are not involved with the management program have expressed appreciation. "I love the new green quad, it gives the campus a more inclusive feel," sophomore Jen Stallings said.