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If approved, branch campus could cost UI an additional $6 million a year once built
University leaders will meet with the State Board of Education on Thursday morning to propose openinga Boise branch of the University of Idaho College of Law, which could cost the university an additional $6 million a year once the school is fully operational.
If the two-location concept is approved, the Boise location would be developed as soon as possible, creating more spots for students interested in studying law in Idaho. The hearing will begin at 8:30 a.m. Thursday in the Idaho Commons Whitewater Room.
University officials could also need another $3 million to $4 million to further modernize the 35-year-old Menard Law Building in Moscow, according to a proposal made public last week. The building has already undergone more than $1 million in improvements during the past two years.
“We wanted to show that embarking on the initiative in Boise would not take away from our existing plans to bring the Menard Building completely up-to-date,” said Don Burnett, dean of the law school.
Administrators have been working for months on a proposal to establish a law school presence in Boise. Burnett said there is a great need for developing a law school in Boise to meet the needs of Idaho’s growing population and UI’s statewide mission of addressing the demand for legal education in the Boise area.
“It would be a grave mistake to confine the law school to Moscow and not fulfill our statewide mission. It would result in a loss of opportunity,” Burnett said. “The main purpose is to serve Idaho and serve our economy.”
According to the proposal, the College of Law would need between $5 million and $6 million more than its current $8 million annual budget to cover the increased costs of operating a second location in the state capital. Burnett said those estimates are on the high side to enable the project to more easily absorb unexpected startup costs.
Plan proponents expect to raise that additional money through grants and private giving, as well as increases in state funding and fees paid by law students.
The initial blueprint anticipates enrollment of 250 students in each city, for a total enrollment of 500 students. Ultimately the two locations will include 38 full-time faculty, up from the 25 faculty members now teaching in Moscow.
The 35-page proposal notes Boise is the state’s population hub and the center of economic and political activity. Also, a Boise presence would allow students to capitalize on access to state government and the Idaho Supreme Court.
The proposal includes a survey showing that more than half of the College of Law students in Moscow would rather pursue their law degrees in Boise.
The survey, conducted in 2007 by Moore Information Inc., also found that nearly two-thirds of students who were admitted to the College of Law at Moscow, but chose to go somewhere else, said they would have been more likely to stay in Idaho if a Boise campus had been an option.
Law students tend to be older, some have families, and the prospect of relocating to rural North Idaho to attend law school in Moscow is not always the most appealing, said Stephen Perez, the law school’s director of admissions.
“It’s not a situation where one is clearly better than the other,” Perez said.
Still, the law school’s graduate numbers have grown little in 30 years. The school handed out 95 degrees in 1976 compared to 105 last year.
Seeking approval from the SBOE is the first hurdle for Burnett and other supporters. The state constitution requires the School of Law to be based in Moscow — as it is now — and the plan to also offer legal programs in Boise would require approval from state lawmakers.
The proposed branch in Boise would not take away from the current law school in Moscow, Burnett said.
“The students in Moscow would benefit from all of the connections built in the Boise office,” he said. “Having a second location will only strengthen the law school in Moscow. We’re not moving the law school, we’re just adding to it.”
In the proposal, university officials say they would be ready to open a Boise branch in fall 2009, but until the Board approves the measure and a business plan is drafted, it is unclear whether the university would first expand an internship program for third-year students, or begin with a small class of first-year law students and add second- and third-year students after that.
The Moscow location focuses on natural resources and environmental law, American Indian law and public lands. The two law schools would offer different courses and different aspects of law but would share the same administration, Burnett said.
Students interested in law school at UI would apply to the program in general and not a specific location. It would be members of the law school that would determine where a student would spend their first year, Burnett said. After a year, the students would be able to decide which area of law they were most interested in and relocate to the location with that emphasis.
If approved, the Boise location would be developed on a phase basis, Burnett said.
“Students in their second and third year of law school would not be directly affect by the changes,” he said. “Students in their first year might.”
The university is coordinating with the Idaho Supreme Court for space in the proposed Idaho Law Learning Center, a project originally proposed by former Chief Justice Gerald Schroeder. Costs to build the center have been estimated at nearly $30 million. State lawmakers have already approved $175,600 in planning money for the center, said high court Administrator Patti Tobias.
“Current students, future students and alumni would benefit from the strengthening of the law school and the enhancement of UI’s reputation,” he said.
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