After considering locations in downtown Fort Wayne for a new law school, Indiana Tech officials on Jan. 24 announced a new $15-million, 70,000-square-foot facility will be constructed on the west edge of the college’s campus.
Construction of the law school is expected to be completed prior to school holding its first classes in fall 2013.
Indiana Tech President Arthur Snyder said the school considered 10 locations, which were eventually narrowed down to three possible sites. The new law school will sit next to Indiana Tech’s Warrior Athletic Center, at the corner of Maumee Avenue and Comparet Street.
“Having the law school on the campus will provide many more opportunities for the law school community to interact with the rest of campus and vice versa,” Peter Alexander, founding dean of the law school, said in a statement. “The location also is close to downtown, which will allow us to foster close working relationships between law school faculty and students and the local bench and bar.”
The law school was designed by SchenkelShultz Architecture in Fort Wayne and SHW Group. The general contractor is Michael Kinder and Sons.
The new facility will contain a courtroom, a law library, classrooms, faculty offices and a cafe. Indiana Tech officials said the building’s design will complement the law school’s emphasis on experiential learning. In its first year, the law school will accept 100 students.
To further students’ practical education, the law school will offer a mediation clinic, in which law school students will work to resolve disputes among undergraduates, and an estate planning clinic, in which law school students will draft simple wills and powers of attorney for Indiana Tech employees.
“These activities will give our law students vital practical opportunities to apply what they learn while building relationships with others in the university,” Alexander said.
