UNC School of Law still needs space

UNC’s School of Law is still calling for a larger space after the legislative appropriation for the construction of a new building at Carolina North was withdrawn six years ago.

Carolina North was proposed as a prospective satellite campus located approximately 2 miles north of UNC’s main campus. For the time being, the plan for relocation is on hold.

The school has remained at the top of the University’s construction priority list, said Jack Boger, the law school’s dean. However, he said he is not optimistic for a new construction project any time soon.

“I was told we are not going to be confident any more, because the legislature is currently interested in innovation projects as the top priority more than construction,” said Boger, who originally announced the planned move in February of 2008.

The school is faced with the challenge of accommodating smaller, more collaborative classes, rather than the typical large lectures law schools employed when the building first opened in 1968, said Paul Rollins, the school’s associate dean for student affairs.

“We also have significantly more student organizations and legal journals,” Rollins said. “Those groups need space to meet for activities and projects.”

Due to the lack of space and the suspension of the construction plan, the school has been upgrading its facilities to better incorporate modern legal education styles. Over the summer, the school invested in renovating an courtroom that was more than 40 years old and out of compliance with modern court procedures.

Bruce Runberg, associate vice chancellor for facilities services, said at a September meeting that there are no firm plans for the development of Carolina North. The plans for a new law school building have stalled as a result.

Some law school faculty members are skeptical of the plan to relocate to Carolina North, even though the school needs more space.

Law professor Mark Weisburd said the school will need more space if student enrollment stays consistent, but he would rather not move so far from campus.

“I am uneasy about moving to Carolina North because I fear that the result will be a reduction in the interaction between the School of Law and the rest of the University,” Weisburd said in an email.

Professor Donald Hornstein, who teaches an undergraduate class of around 150 students from different disciplines who are interested in law, said the law school’s ability to be interdisciplinary requires them to stay on the main campus.

Law student John Harris, the third-year class president of the Student Bar Association, said he felt the current building is very functional but that moving wouldn’t cause a disconnect from the rest of campus.

“We will make do in the space we have, and our faculty, students and staff have been very cooperative,” Boger said.

“But we very much need a 21st century space in which to teach and do our research.”

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