When Roscoe Jones Jr. joined Drake Law School as dean in July 2024, he made artificial intelligence an institutional priority. One of his first steps was creating an AI Task Force, which brought together faculty and experts to explore how emerging technologies could shape the school’s academic offerings. From that work came the AI Law Certificate, a program that positions Drake Law as a leader in preparing students for the evolving intersection of law and technology.
“We try to transform the lives of our students so that they can really make an impact in the world,” said Jones. “Oftentimes, there are trends. There are trends in society, there are trends in the legal profession. Our job is to prepare lawyers for the world that they’re going to face. AI is one of those trends, and it’s going to be a gift that’s going to keep on giving.”
Drake University became the first law school in Iowa to launch an Artificial Intelligence Law Certificate on April 24. Four months later, the program is no longer an announcement, but a reality where data privacy and intellectual property law intersect with debates over algorithms and bias.
Despite being smaller than some coastal institutions, Drake is aiming to make a meaningful impact in preparing lawyers in the Midwest. Only a few other law schools, including Harvard and Yale Universities, offer similar AI-focused certificates. Where Harvard prioritizes institutional research and computer science fundamentals, Yale integrates AI into the curriculum with a hands-on approach.
Jones emphasized that the certificate is about more than law; it is designed to prepare students for a world where AI touches nearly every sector.
“AI is not a silo,” Jones said. “It will impact education, business, journalism, health care and more. Our vision is to prepare students to be interdisciplinary and partner across campus and the community so they’re ready for the world they will enter.”
While Silicon Valley often dominates the conversation around technology, Jones pointed out the growing importance of the Midwest, referring to it as the “Silicon Prairie.” The term highlights the region’s expanding role in technology. At the same time, it emphasizes the need for lawyers who understand the legal and practical challenges accompanying innovation happening beyond the coastlines. Jones sees Drake Law preparing students to lead as they enter the space.
Bringing that vision to life required leadership across the faculty, including a key role from Associate Professor and Sease Faculty Research Scholar Sayoko Blodgett-Ford, who guided the development of the certificate and helped bridge interdisciplinary divides across campus.
Under Blodgett-Ford’s guidance, the AI Law Certificate has taken shape as a dynamic program that combines existing core law courses with new interdisciplinary opportunities. While courses such as Artificial Intelligence Law and Cybersecurity Law have been offered in previous years, the certificate now provides a clear, structured curriculum for students to follow. The program also launched its first collaborative AI law project with the Art and Design Department.
“This Spring 2026 graduation will be the first year that any students could have completed all the requirements for the new AI Law Certificate,” Blodgett-Ford said. “However, students have expressed strong interest and excitement about the program, including both new students and upper-level students, so we are already seeing it as a ‘win’ for Drake.”
Blodgett-Ford emphasized that the certificate will continue to grow across Drake’s campus, building partnerships with the College of Business, the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and the School of Education. Jones has also stressed the importance of extending these connections beyond the University by being open to working with everyone in the Des Moines community to ensure students gain practical, real-world experience. These partnerships aim to give students a broad, practice-ready perspective on how AI intersects with law and society.
For Jones, the AI Law Certificate demonstrates that the influence of a law school is measured not by its size, but by the impact it has on students and the community. He hopes that by equipping lawyers to address artificial intelligence issues in the Silicon Prairie, Drake Law is preparing graduates to lead in a region increasingly shaped by technology.
