There always seems to be something new on the Southern New England Law School front. Only a few weeks after the UMass Board approved a merger with SNESL, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology put forth an unexpected (and aggressive) offer to acquire the independent, as-yet-unaccredited law school. Although the announcement is not yet public, I have been provided a number of details on the qt. Among other things, MIT is assuring existing and newly admitted students that they will be offered a place in the new school - to be called the Senator John Sununu College of Law (named after the famous MIT alumnus). In addition, unlike the UMass deal, all existing faculty will be assured a place on the Sununu Law faculty.
MIT officials made it clear that this project was designed for two very different purposes. First, MIT was looking to bolster the school's reputation by proving that it is a comprehensive university, and not merely a tech school. As MIT's President, Susan Hockfield, put it: "so often, people hear Massachusetts Institute of Technology and think we focus on auto repair and web graphics. But we're so much more than that - and having a law school will prove it."
Second, MIT needs to shore up the sagging balance sheet. Hockfield said "we took a beating in the markets in the past two years and what we really need is a cash cow." She noted that UMass expected to earn over a million a year in profits from SNESL. "That might not pay for a brand new electron accelerator, but it's not chump change either."
Although Hockfield did not focus on it, the merger is particularly attractive for MIT because it will give the school a desperately needed presence in southern Massachusetts. "Thus far, we've really only been the Cambridge Institute of Technology. With this merger, we'll finally be as big as our name suggests."
Comments