IU Law School Looks to Army to Bolster Pipeline

Austen Parrish serves as dean of the IU Maurer School of Law in Bloomington.

The Indiana University Maurer School of Law has reached what it calls a first-of-its-kind agreement with the U.S. Army. The partnership involves scholarships and mentorship opportunities for qualified active-duty and reserve soldiers on the Bloomington campus. IU previously reached similar agreements with several Midwest institutions and with a handful of women’s colleges outside the state.

Other agreements include Vassar College in New York, Wabash College and schools in Illinois and Georgia. Dean Austen Parrish says the outreach serves as a way to tap a pool of potential students in corners of the country that may not know about IU, the law school, or the quality of life possible in the Midwest. He says additional discussions are ongoing with other military branches and the school is reaching out to public interest organizations throughout the country to develop what he describes as a "slightly different" collaboration that would include summer externships.

Dean Austen Parrish says the program can attract students who can handle the rigors of law school. "These students are incredibly talented. In order for them to have gotten into the position to be selected for the (Funded Legal Education Program) in the Army, they’ve got to be tremendous leaders that have excelled in the Army programs." He says these student soldiers are normally successful because they are hard-workers and driven and can "handle the rigors fairly well."

You can read more about the U.S. Army Law Scholar program at IU by clicking here.