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UBC Law School Campaign Gets $6 Million – Going to New Law Library Among Other Things
University of British Columbia President Stephen J. Toope today announced a $6 million grant from the Law Foundation of British Columbia to benefit public access to justice and student learning in B.C.
“The pivotal nature of the Law Foundation’s contribution cannot be underestimated,” says Toope. “The impact on UBC Law Faculty’s ability to contribute to the needs of our society will be profound.”
The $6 million grant will contribute to a new building to house the UBC Faculty of Law, the UBC Law Library, the Law Students Legal Advice Program (LSLAP) and the British Columbia Law Institute — a public resource that focuses on law reform — and support for other UBC Law faculty and student-led initiatives.
$6M here, $1M from Farris, plus the minuscule amount of the sky-high tuition that actually goes towards the law school, and we are still decades years away from dispensing with the concrete bunker we currently call alma mater.
My suggestion, spend some of the money immediately on fixing some of the worst aspects of the building – in particular it’s antiquated and dilapidated heating and ventilation systems.
The overall budget for the proposed new building is about $22 million. About a third of that has been pledged in the past three months. So I don’t think we’re “decades” away from having the money for a new building. I believe the current plans are to break ground in about three or four years. In the meantime, there is little sense in spending money on the old building (beyond necessary maintenance, of course).