WORCESTER, Mass. - A new education and research building is a step closer to being complete at UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester.

The school held a topping off ceremony Monday as they raised the ceremonial steel beam with hundreds of signatures of community members.

The new nine-story 350,000 square-foot building sits at the center of the campus. Chancellor Michael Collins said it will expand research space to accommodate more than 70 principal investigators who specialize in gene therapy, molecular medicine and neuroscience.

It will also add educational and conference spaces for all three graduate schools on campus.

"The teaching and biomedical research that will occur here, is critical to us achieving our strategic goals, groundbreaking discoveries in RNA, gene therapy and ALS, HIV, Down syndrome, Tay-Sachs, Canavan disease, and so many more have been made right here on this campus” said Collins. “And as we come together today to celebrate the promise of the next generation, we celebrate breakthroughs and teaching that will take place right here in this beautiful new place."

The next phase of construction will be the building's roof, and the goal is to start work on the interior this winter. The nearly $350 million building is scheduled to open in the spring of 2024.