In January of 2008, the Board of Regents granted approval for Washburn University School of Law to begin the process of establishing a fourth Center of Excellence to accompany the Center for Business and Transactional Law, the Center for Children and Family Law, and the Center for Excellence in Advocacy. This new addition, the Center for Law and Government, is now in the process of securing funding and establishing contacts.

Thanks to a generous donation of $300,000, known as the Senator Robert J. Dole Law Professorship Fund, the School of Law can now fulfill its dreams. This was a recent gift from the senator, who graduated from Washburn with a JD and BA in 1952.

“Senator Dole was a veteran of World War II when he came to Washburn to get his law degree,” said Thomas Romig, dean of the law school. “He never forgot his roots, and throughout his career he has been dedicated to our law school.”

The importance of all four of these centers is to provide students with programs in which they can specialize. The next two steps for the Center for Law and Government, thanks to Sen. Dole’s charitable contribution, are to create a curriculum-which will allow more intense practice-and to find a candidate for a tenured director position.

Many new opportunities for law students will arise with this center, such as growing opportunities for scholarships, and the chance to participate in extracurricular activities within specific areas of law. Also, the law school will be able to bring in alumni, people who practice law.

An added benefit is that students will have the opportunity to graduate with a Certificate in Government Law, which will further boost their marketability.

“Senator Dole is the epitome of what we want someone to do practicing with our program. He has practiced at the local, state, and federal level,” said Romig. “He has practiced at the local, state and federal level. His name helps our programs,” said Romig.

Of course, Bob Dole is not the only successful alumni to emerge from Washburn University. Hundreds of graduates are practicing at some level of government. Topeka and the surrounding area alone have approximately 1,200 attorneys, 600 of whom are in state and local government.

Romig and the entire School of Law are very proud of Senator Dole, as well as grateful for his generosity.

“This was a tremendous donation,” said Romig.