The University of Massachusetts Amherst will build a 490,477-square-foot, $182 million residential and teaching complex for its Commonwealth Honors College.

The complex will include 1,500 beds, nine classrooms, faculty residences and gathering spaces, according to a statement. The building design is expected to be completed in February and the complex is scheduled to open in fall 2013. Preliminary plans call for buildings ranging from four to six stories arranged around a series of courtyards.

"Commonwealth Honors College is the premier honors college in New England serving the greatest number of students in the largest number of majors," said Dean Priscilla M. Clarkson. "This new complex will serve as a visible representation of the commitment of this campus to academic excellence and will help attract even more students to the program."