Loyola University College of Law is turning 100, and the college is throwing a birthday party.

Oct. 5 marks the day classes were first taught in what is known today at the College of Law, Andrew Piacun, assistant dean of administration and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program site coordinator, said.

Events such as the Dominican College selling property to the law school and Hurricane Katrina have shaped the current layout, architecture, and additions to the College of Law, Piacun said.

Originally the College of Law was housed on Loyola’s main campus, Piacun said.

A recent addition, adding four stories and 16,000-square-feet in 2007, was the expansion of Wendell H. and Anne B. Gauthier Family Wing, a building on the Broadway Campus, according to the Loyola website.

This addition was financed by the The Memorandum of Understanding, Piacun said.

“The Memorandum of Understanding spells out the financial relationship between the College of Law and the university and assures financial stability and predictability for both. The University fulfills the MOU when it follows its requirements regarding resource allocation,” Maria Lopez, dean of the College of Law, said.

The current relationship began in 2003, but the university has had other understandings in the past with the College of Law, Piacun said.

Over the years, the Gillis Long Poverty Law Center and Stuart H. Smith Law Clinic and Center for Social Justice have become programs within the College of Law.

These programs are traits that have set Loyola’s law school apart from other institutions, Lopez said.

Today, students at the College of Law said they believe the celebration will remember the past and look toward the future.

Matt Foster, second year law student, said he believes the education he has received at the College of Law will serve him well in his future.

“I really enjoy it and am happy with the professors and how they integrate practical learning,” Foster said.

Andrea Rogers, third year law student, said she believes the atmosphere of the law school has been beneficial to her education.

“I think that they foster a very supportive, family type of environment for the faculty and students,” Rogers said.

Ryan Ramsauer, A ’12 of the College of Law, reflects on his experience at Loyola University College of Law.

“Loyola Law is an exceptional school that uniquely defines itself by not only being built upon tradition, but constantly evolving and improving,” Ramsauer said.

Judson Mitchell Jr., assistant clinical professor and attorney at law, said he believes the college will remember the past by continuing to be present in the community.

“It’s a wonderful place to work. We’re allowed to do things to help the community and beyond, ” he said.

Mitchell said he expected the school to be “continuing our tradition in serving the community and expanding the things that we already do.”

Events planned for celebration have not been finalized, but the official start of the centennial is planned to take place on Jan. 31, Lopez said.

Graduates from the College of Law have gone on to become prominent figures in the legal world, Lopez said.

Graduates have included Samuel Dalton, founding chairman of the Jefferson Parish Indigent Defender Board, Joseph Anthony LaHaye, 27th judicial district court, and Dana-Megan Rossi, legal analyst and appointed publisher of Main Justice, according to Loyola Lawyer, Loyola University’s law magazine.

“Law schools are changing very much,” Lopez said. “We are changing to address the needs of the students.”

Micah Hebert contributed to this report.

Lucy Dieckhaus can be reached at [email protected]