September 26, 2007

Cooley Law School Invests $36 Million in New Auburn Hills Campus

Growing southeast Michigan student population and strong enrollment forecasts need for dedicated campus

The Thomas M. Cooley Law School announced today that the school will move its Oakland County campus to Auburn Hills, investing approximately $36 million in a new, dedicated campus. The school has offered classes on the campus of Oakland University since 2002.

“Our southeast Michigan program has experienced tremendous growth during the past two years, creating a need for us to expand to our own location,” Thomas M. Cooley Law School President Don LeDuc said. “We demand the very best from our students and are excited to offer them a comprehensive, top-notch facility in which to learn. Our partnership with Oakland University will continue through existing joint degree programs and hopefully will expand to other collaborative efforts.”

The law school’s move to the 67-acre Auburn Hills site, 2630 Featherstone Road, will include the renovation of a 65,300-square-foot structure that has sat vacant for more than five years.

The structure, previously owned by DaimlerChrysler, is expected to be completely renovated and include many environmentally green building features. These planned features include the selection of many renewable and recyclable materials, reflective roofing to minimize heat gain and an enhanced heating and ventilation system. The building will be ready for student use by January 2008. The school will seek certification for the new complex under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™.

The law school also will add 62,000 square feet to the structure in the next 15 months. The addition is expected to be completed in January 2009.

More than 600 students currently attend Cooley Law School on the campus of Oakland University.

“When we entered into this partnership, one of our key goals was to make law school more accessible to students in southeastern Michigan, and to bring needed graduate programs to law students,” said Oakland University President Gary Russi.  “Working together, we have accomplished that goal.  The expansion of the partnership between Cooley and Oakland University will benefit generations of students and boost the economic development of the region.”

In January 2008, enrollment at Cooley’s Auburn Hills campus is projected to be approximately 650 students and 750 students by January 2009. Cooley, the nation’s largest law school, has more than 3,600 students at its three locations in Lansing, Grand Rapids and Oakland County.

“This is more than an economic boost for a vacant, but valuable property in our region,” said Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson. “This investment will increase the region’s intellectual capital through the migration of an educated workforce to Oakland County.”

Once the renovation and addition are completed, the site will provide up to 800 Cooley students with large and small classrooms, a full law library and courtrooms (trial and appellate) equipped with the latest in technology.

“Cooley’s investment in Auburn Hills is an encouraging sign of our viability and potential,” said Mike Culpepper, city manager for Auburn Hills. “We are excited by Cooley’s significant investment in our community and very impressed with Cooley’s efforts in redeveloping a difficult site into an environmentally friendly example for others to follow.”

Celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, Cooley Law School is the largest law school in the country and includes the largest African-American and second-largest minority student enrollment.  Founded in 1972, it operates J.D. programs in Michigan's capital city in Lansing, in suburban Oakland County, and in downtown Grand Rapids.  Today, Cooley Law School has over 12,000 graduates across the nation and worldwide and also offers joint degree and Master of Laws programs.  Additional information about Cooley can be found at www.cooley.edu.