LAW SCHOOL IS BORN. And born again. And then reinvented in the midst of great challenge. That’s the story of Oklahoma City University School of Law. We treasure our origins at statehood, our re-birth in the 1950’s, and now the leap to the urban core of a world-class city. Like a big strong horse, we are in mid-jump with eyes on the horizon. Our vision: to serve as a rigorous interdisciplinary law school in dynamic partnership with the community. That vision is now our reality. We begin the first full academic year in our new home with immense gratitude for the alums, friends and community partners who have so generously supported the school’s transformational move. The financial support and abiding friendships have strengthened our school and its mission and placed us on a national stage, much like the City itself. Our student body — a diverse and lively group of full- and part-time students — feels the galvanizing strength of the community, and they are engaged and connected to the world beyond the walls of the school. They are lengthening their stride and feeling the power and problem-solving capacity of the legal profession. Building toward this point in time, our school has been forging partnerships with several other universities and departments within our own university to develop interdisciplinary programs to prepare our students for the jobs and challenges of the future. Forensic science, child abuse and neglect, cybersecurity, education law, environmental studies, public administration, municipal law and policy, non-profit leadership, business administration and more are the subjects of developed programs or ones on the drawing board. Our building itself is scheduled to be the venue for art exhibits, theater productions and musical performances, community board meetings, judicial conferences, professional continuing education classes and world-renown speakers and visitors. Our new center for
homeland security law – The Judge Alfred P. Murrah Center for Homeland Security Law and Policy – places us in meaningful partnerships with the Oklahoma City National Memorial, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Law and National Security. Our community service territory embraces the surrounding schools, church missions and non-profit organizations. Our American Indian Law and Sovereignty Center and American Indian Wills Clinic are creating and sustaining partnerships with tribal communities, tribal governments, groups such as the Indian Land Tenure Foundation, and distinguished American Indian law practitioners. In these interdisciplinary initiatives, which you will read about in the pages ahead, and many more, we are engaging our students in the relationships and partnerships that will shape their professional identities and strengthen their capacities, resilience, knowledge and wisdom. We are creating leaders. We look ahead with great excitement. The faith our friends and City have placed in us and the work we have undertaken creates great responsibility — to help build a better community, to improve the system of justice, to create leaders who have the diligence, competence, civility, empathy and experience to advance the common good. We accept that responsibility and gallop toward that future with a full heart. Thank you for your goodwill, friendship and involvement in the life and future of Oklahoma City University School of Law. With gratitude and appreciation for your friendship,
Valerie K. Couch