University of Baltimore's New Law Center Reaches Initial Fundraising Goal of $15 Million
March 18, 2010
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
University of Baltimore President Robert L. Bogomolny has announced that the University has achieved its fundraising goal of $15 million in private funding for the development and construction of its new law building. The private support will be used in conjunction with Maryland state funding for construction of the 190,000-square-foot building at the northeast corner of North Charles Street and Mount Royal Avenue. Bogomolny said that additional private funding will be sought by the University for various components of the project, especially those that advance UB's goal of a building that is environmentally sustainable and highly efficient.
Groundbreaking is expected to begin in July, with projected completion in late 2012. UB is awaiting final approval from the Maryland General Assembly for funding from the state's capital budget. The facility will provide much-needed additional space for the UB School of Law, the sixth-largest public law school in the country.
In the coming weeks, the University will host a special ceremony to celebrate the completion of this part of its capital campaign and to announce the key donors for the new John and Frances Angelos Law Center at the University.
"The new law center will be one of the most important buildings in the city and state in the coming years and the completion of this initial phase of our private funding campaign is a critical step forward in our efforts," Bogomolny said. "Now we are continuing to raise funds for various elements of the project, especially those that will make the new law school one of the 'greenest' buildings in the metropolitan area, if not the region."
The design for UB's new John and Frances Angelos Law Center stemmed from last fall's unprecedented international design competition, sponsored by the University and supported by a grant from the Abell Foundation. The winning design was submitted by Behnisch Architekten of Stuttgart, Germany, in partnership with Baltimore's Ayers/Saint/Gross, and the design work completed to date has received high praise from both city and state architectural review bodies.
The UB School of Law has a rich legacy of producing legal practitioners, judges, public defenders, prosecutors and community and civic advocates. UB alumni account for 30 percent of Maryland's Circuit Court judges, 34 percent of its District Court judges and more than one-third of its elected state's attorneys. The current UB law facility opened in 1982; since that time, student enrollment has increased by more than 20 percent. Faculty and support staff have more than doubled, reflecting the changing needs of legal education.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the School of Law, the Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts and the Merrick School of Business.