Suffolk celebrates completion of Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School

Fall River, MA Suffolk, one of the most innovative and successful builders in the country, joined the Greater Fall River Vocational School District, state and local officials, educators and community members to celebrate the completion of the Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School. The new facility will provide more than 1,500 students across greater Fall River, Westport, Somerset and Swansea with expanded access to technical education, hands-on learning and career pathways that prepare them for the workforce of the future.

Delivered on time and on budget, the 400,000 s/f school reflects the critical importance of schedule and cost certainty in educational construction. Suffolk built the new facility on the existing campus, adjacent to the occupied 1968 facility, while students and educators continued their daily routines without interruption. Involving detailed planning, precise scheduling and careful management of site logistics, Suffolk coordinated at its peak over 200 subcontractors and trade partners on site each day to successfully deliver one of the largest and most complex K-12 projects in Massachusetts. 

The new school required Suffolk to deliver a wide range of highly specialized academic, technical, and vocational spaces. The project included construction of a 600-seat auditorium, a cafeteria designed to accommodate 500 students at a time, expanded medical assisting and dental assisting training facilities, science laboratories with shared preparation spaces, and significantly larger shop and technical education spaces. Among the most impressive spaces is the trade hall, where the 42-foot ceilings will allow the adjacent vocational shops to collaborate and showcase large-scale projects together. Throughout construction, Suffolk worked closely with the project team and trade partners to integrate these specialized environments into a cohesive facility designed to accommodate growing enrollment and prepare students for an increasingly technology-driven workforce.

The construction process also created opportunities to connect the project with the community it will serve. Suffolk hosted students, educators and local officials for site tours throughout construction, offering a firsthand look at the work taking place on campus. Several Diman alumni were among the trade professionals who helped build the new school, bringing an especially meaningful connection to the project.

 Its completion marks a significant milestone for the Greater Fall River Vocational School District and brings to life a long-standing facility for a modern learning environment that will serve generations of students.

“Diman is more than a new school. It is an investment in students, the local workforce, and the future of this community,” said Pat Lucey, president of the Northeast and National Centers of Excellence at Suffolk. “Delivering a project of this scale on an active campus required extraordinary coordination and a true partnership among the District, designers, trade partners and community. We’re especially proud that the classrooms and technical spaces we helped build will prepare the next generation of skilled professionals, some of whom may one day help build projects like this one.”

“This project has been the result of a strong partnership between the school district, project team and broader community,” said School District of Fall River Superintendent-Director Brian Bentley. “This new campus provides students and educators with an exceptional environment for teaching and learning, and it represents a significant investment in the future of vocational and technical education in our region.”

Suffolk’s extensive K-12 portfolio throughout Massachusetts includes the South Shore Technical High School, Somerville High School, Roxbury Preparatory Charter School, Lowell High School and Saugus Middle High School. Suffolk has also delivered some of the region’s most complex higher education projects, including the Boston University Center for Computing & Data Sciences, Northeastern University’s Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex, Balsam and Spruce Halls at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and Fieldstone Apartments at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.