UPDATE—This article has been updated to reflect a statement from Judith Daar, dean of Chase College of Law.

Nunn Hall, home of the Chase College of Law, is under construction this semester, shuffling law students, faculty and staff around campus. All of the college’s classes have been moved elsewhere on campus and temporary offices have been assigned to the college’s faculty and staff. 

Work on the HVAC system, plumbing systems and restrooms will take place on the second through fifth floors throughout the spring and summer. Because of the noisy nature of the work, all classes are being held in other locations, said Senior Director of Planning, Design and Construction Mary Paula Schuh.

Law classes are taking place in Griffin Hall, Landrum Academic Center, Math, Education and Psychology Center, Founders Hall, Lucas Administration Center and the Business Academic Center, according to myNKU. The Chase Law Library on the second floor is expected to be accessible until after final exams in the spring, according to Schuh.

First-year law student Matt Code spoke about his experience with the class dispersions. Code’s class schedule is spread across campus–with three classes in Landrum Academic Center, two in Griffin Hall and one in the Business Academic Center. 

The building closure was put on his radar in October 2023, as Dean Judith Daar sent a mass email to students, faculty and staff regarding the disruption. The dean urged students and faculty to visit the location of the newly assigned classrooms before the start of the semester. Code pointed out that for law students who did not attend NKU for their undergraduate degree, it will be a transition period to learn the new buildings and find the quickest ways around campus.

“Obviously it’s very convenient to be in one building all the time,” Code said. “There’s going to be some growing pains anytime you’re in new spaces, but I think everybody has adapted pretty well.”

In Daar’s October email, she included that non-class activities scheduled in Nunn Hall are free to proceed as long as they do not interfere with the construction work.

Ken Katkin, a professor of law in Nunn Hall, was made aware of a potential closure last spring and heard the official timeline of the construction at the August and September faculty meetings, he said. 

Because of the closure, Katkin’s office and the courses he teaches will be taking place in Griffin Hall, mainly in the Digitorium this semester. He mentioned how the switch has brought on some new challenges while teaching in the new space, specifically with technology.

“It’s a steep learning curve,” Katkin said. “I usually make powerpoint slides and put it up, and I didn’t know how to do that in the Digitorium at first. There are staff who came and helped me, but that happened during class so that actually wasted some of my class time.”

Katkin mentioned that there has been some positive impacts of the change, noting how he gets to be around other faculty and staff members that he wouldn’t otherwise see being housed in Nunn Hall. 

“Most of the offices around me are people I don’t know. It’s kind of nice to get the quietude of coming and going and not knowing people, and it actually makes it easier to get work done,” Katkin said. “We’ll just be doing our own thing, but that can be relaxing and rejuvenating in its own way.”

“While the construction has been disruptive, we are very excited about improvements underway for our community. The updated space will provide learning, networking and advocacy opportunities befitting the state-of-the-art legal education we deliver at Chase. We are grateful to our colleagues across campus who have welcomed us into their NKU homes,” Dean Daar wrote to The Northerner.

The schedule for construction on the second through fifth floors is as follows:

• Fifth floor: Dec. 26 through March 21
• Fourth floor: Feb. 19 through April 26
• Third floor: March 22 through June 19
• Second floor: May 19 through Sept. 5

The plumbing systems that service all of the building’s restrooms will be replaced. This includes the piping that delivers water to the restrooms and the plumbing system that directs wastewater out of the building, according to Schuh. Each of the building’s restrooms will be renovated and all-gender restrooms will be added, according to the college’s website. 

Construction began in the building during the fall but was confined to just the first floor. Shale deposits under the building that expand when wet caused uneven floor surfaces and posed a structural threat to the building if left unaddressed. A significant portion of the bottom floor slab has been gutted and is being reworked to create a buffer between the floor slab and the shale beneath, said Schuh.

Underground water and storm lines that showed signs of deterioration are also being replaced while the opportunity is presented, said Schuh.

When the first floor is finished, it will feature study rooms, interview rooms, conferencing space, common areas and a 100-seat courtroom, according to the college’s website.