We’re doing this from a position of strength. We could continue to lose money on this campus, but we’re doing this to shore everything up. It’s not like a fire sale. We believe for the future of legal education, one campus in Michigan is enough. We’re not in danger of closing. It’s just that we really need to plan for the future.
— Dean James McGrath of the Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School, commenting on the decision to close the school’s Grand Rapids campus at the end of the academic year, due to a significant drop in enrollment with applications “way down” due to COVID-19. This is the second Cooley Law campus to close in as many years. The school closed its Auburn Hills campus last year because it was “undersubscribed.” With COVID—even though applications to law school are up slightly—the applications to us in the range of students we’re trying to attract is way down.” Per McGrath, “We ended up not laying off any people in Auburn Hills. I don’t think we’ll get that lucky in Grand Rapids.” This will leave Cooley Law with only its Lansing, Michigan, and Tampa Bay, Florida, campuses.
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.