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The Academy of Art University (formerly known as Academy of Art College) was founded in [[San Francisco]] in [[1929]] by Richard S. Stephens. Since then, it has gradually expanded to occupy over 30 buildings in the downtown area and with an enrollment of approximately 9,500 students, it is the largest art and design school in the [[USA]].
The Academy of Art University, a for-profit institution owned by the Stephens Institute, was founded in [[San Francisco]] in [[1929]] by Richard S. Stephens. Since then, it has expanded to occupy over 30 buildings in the downtown area and with an enrollment of approximately 9,500 students, it is the largest art and design school in the [[USA]].


The Academy offers accredited AA, BFA, MFA, M-Arch, or Certificate programs both online and on campus in 13 majors: Advertising, Animation & Visual Effects, Architecture (MFA & M-Arch only), Computer Arts/New Media, Digital Arts & Communications, Fashion, Fine Art, Graphic Design, Illustration, Industrial Design, Interior Architecture & Design, Motion Pictures & Television, and Photography.
The Academy offers AA, BFA, MFA, M-Arch, or Certificate programs both online and on campus in 13 majors: Advertising, Animation & Visual Effects, Architecture (MFA & M-Arch only), Computer Arts/New Media, Digital Arts & Communications, Fashion, Fine Art, Graphic Design, Illustration, Industrial Design, Interior Architecture & Design, Motion Pictures & Television, and Photography. Because the school is not curently accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, its BFA's are not accepted as evidence of adequate scholarly or artistic preparation by many graduate programs and its units are not generally accepted for tranfer to other four-year universities. The Academy is in the process of re-applying for WASC accreditation, which it has failed to earn in the past.




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The Academy of Art University was established in San Francisco in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens, a fine art painter who had accepted the position of Creative Director for Sunset Magazine. Assisted by his wife, Mrs. Clara Stephens, he opened the new school in a rented loft at 215 Kearny Street to teach advertising art. In a few years, a distinguished faculty of practicing art and design professionals was assembled and the school’s philosophy was formulated: hire established professionals to teach future professionals. In 1933 the curriculum was expanded to include Fashion Illustration, and in 1936 a Fine Art Department was added.
The Academy of Art University was established in San Francisco in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens, a Creative Director for Sunset Magazine. Assisted by his wife, Mrs. Clara Stephens, he opened the new school in a rented loft at 215 Kearny Street to teach advertising art. In 1933 the curriculum was expanded to include Fashion Illustration, and in 1936 a Fine Art Department was added.
In 1951, after graduating from Stanford University, Dr. Richard A. Stephens took over the Presidency from his parents. His vision led to the expansion of the Academy from an enrollment of fifty students in two rented loft spaces to a 5,200 student body, with continued expansion of department majors available. In 1966 the school was incorporated and granted authority to offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education of the State of California. The graduate program was inaugurated in 1977 and approved by 1983.
In 1951, after graduating from Stanford University, Richard A. Stephens took over the Presidency from his parents. His tenure led to the expansion of the Academy from an enrollment of fifty students in two rented loft spaces to a 5,200 student body, with continued expansion of department majors available. In 1966 the school was incorporated and granted authority to offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education of the State of California. The graduate program was inaugurated in 1977 and approved by 1983. Around this time, Academy faculty formed a union that was certified by the National Labor Relations Board as the California Federation of Art Teachers. After many attempts by the school to prevent the union from becoming active, and a proctracted legal battle, the National Labor Relations Board prevailed in federal court and secured back pay for many instructors who had been illegally terminated according to the terms of the National Labor Relations Act.
Elisa Stephens, the granddaughter of the school’s founder, succeeded her father as President of the Academy of Art University in 1992. Stephens has been committed to establishing the Academy's brand identity. Like her father, Stephens has been embroiled in controversy. In December, Stephens moved to expel a student for having written a story in a creative writing class that featured a male protagonist who was a serial killer and who mutilated his female victims. Stevens, at the suggestion of the Academy's Vice President of Academic Affairs, Sue Rowley, arranged to have the student criminally profiled and, finally, expelled. The student's instructor, Jan Richman, a poet and former recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts grant, was subsequently terminated, as was Alan Kaufman, another instructor, who organized protests of both the student's expulsion and of Richman's termination. Pullitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon wrote an editorial for the New York Times protesting the school's actions and calling for a re-evaluation of censorship and artistic freedom. PEN Faulkner president Salman Rushdie wrote a letter in protest of the school's censorship and labor policies. Neither Chabon's editorial nor Rushdie's letter were acknowledged by Stephens, who later arranged to censor and shut down a student newspaper that was covering the events and calling for the formation of a democratically elected student government.
Dr. Elisa Stephens, the granddaughter of the school’s founder, succeeded her father as President of the Academy of Art University in 1992. Dr. Stephens has been committed to expanding the Academy’s curriculum to stay current with new technologies and industry trends, as well as making state-of-the art facilities and resources available to Academy students. In 2004, the name of the school was changed from Academy of Art College to Academy of Art University in recognition of its depth, scope and quality.


== '''DEPARTMENTS''' ==


The Academy has 12 different majors.
'''[[Advertising]]:''' Anyone can make ads that are funny or dramatic; not everyone can make ads that actually help sell their products. The Academy's advertising program will teach students an integrated approach to marketing communications that's backed by solid strategic thinking. They will create ads that work for the client, the consumer, and the times. When graduates leave, they will know how to express product advantages in fresh, meaningful, memorable ways that convince consumers they match their needs and lifestyles — this will give them a portfolio that screams for employer attention. They will also have the skills and thinking ability to land a job that's challenging, exciting, and pays a salary that's almost embarrassing.
'''[[Animation]] & [[Visual Effects]]:''' At the Academy's School of Animation and Visual Effects, it doesn't matter whether prospective students intend to study 2D or 3D animation; they will be instructed by professional animators who have their fingers on the pulse of the industry. These expert instructors will help them navigate the world of professional animation, and make sure they graduate with the versatility to move between pencil and mouse.
'''[[Architecture]] (MFA-M.ARCH Only):''' The Academy of Art University's School of Architecture program has been designed to prepare the graduate — through education and through the process of designing — to create visual and physical changes to our built environment that enhance its quality and our experience. The Academy's architecture students create the buildings that define a neighborhood, that define a landscape, that define a city, that define and reshape our idea of place. Instructors recognize that the highest level of architecture successfully integrates design, technology, art, form, environment, construction and culture, and all within the realities of architectural practice.But more than that: the graduates of the Academy's architecture school have a portfolio of work on par with that of any other school, and with artistry to separate them from the crowd.
'''[[Computer Arts]] : [[New Media]]''': The instructors at the Academy's School of Computer Arts: New Media will show students how to use the power of digital technology to unleash the power of their vision. They'll teach students the flexibility needed to realize the future and expose them to the realities of the industries in which you'll earn a living. Students will start, as every great communicator does, with the basics: drawing, perspective, color, and design. Then, students will learn to think, imagine, dream, and create in a spectrum of techniques never before possible. They can create video games that titillate the imagination, film and special '''[[Digital Arts & Communication]]:'''The Digital Arts and Communications Program integrates traditional art skills and concept development with new technologies and new digital platforms. The steady growth of the internet has proved to be an effective and profitable venue, and the demand for communication devices such as cell phones, personal digital assistants and interactive television have generated a new genre of exciting career opportunities. An emergence in evaluation, study and practices in areas such as user interface development, navigation systems, information architecture, structural workflow, legibility issues and user testing have also developed a new kind language – a fluency expected in the industry. The DIG program balances this “fluency” with courses in art content creation, executed by a suite of digital tools for an overall integrated and marketable portfolio to meet the needs of the industry. '''[[Fashion]]''':The Academy's School of Fashion combines European artisanship with New York industry savvy, California freshness with modern American technology. Students will experience a curriculum designed like no other. This one-of-a-kind learning opportunity at the best fashion school in the country is enhanced by a strong faculty influenced by the distinctive St. Martin's touch. '''[[Fine Art]]''': Too often, fine art schools are thought of as places where rich kids play and dreamers vegetate. Not here. At the Academy's School of Fine Art, students' flights of fancy in paint and clay and metal are grounded in solid classical tradition. Students will actually learn how to create art and have it recognized by their grandmother. They will learn discipline that will distinguish them for a lifetime. Then, with the skills and knowledge that made the masters the masters, they will be taught and encouraged to let theirimagination take flight, their unique vision soar. But, there's more. They will learn how to find apprenticeships, how to find a rep before they graduate, how to present themself, how to exhibit in a gallery, how to make themselves known and how to make a living. Students will learn not only art, but the business of art. Imagine that — fine art training that teaches you how to be wonderful, and make a living at it! '''[[Graphic Design]]''': Everywhere you look, you'll see the work of a graphic designer. It's the layout of your favorite magazine, the recognizable mark that identifies brands and companies, the annual reports and Web sites of public corporations, the labels on your choice of wine, and the products you buy in the supermarket.S tudents will find themselves in a real-world atmosphere doing graphic design the way professionals do it. They will be taught by professionals drawn from a talent pool known the world over. By the time they receive their diploma, they will have the honed skills and technical knowledge necessary to be interviewed and hired by companies such as DreamWorks SKG, LucasFilm, Landor Associates, Primo Angeli, Tolleson, and Disney. '''[[Illustration]]''': Illustration careers span a broad range, from the edge of fine art to cartoons and animation. Illustrators can find work with entertainment and game industries — and with publishers, ad agencies, and design studios. At the Academy's School of Illustration, we prepare our illustration students for the ever-changing needs of the business of creativity. Students will find themselves in a whirlwind of drawing, traditional images, and computer imaging. You’ll work on foregrounds, backgrounds, and storyboards, and also at 24 frames-per-second. While mastering this myriad of skills and techniques, they will also learn how to represent themselves, how to enter competitions like the New York Society of Illustrators, how to promote themselves, and how to make a living. They will receive a balanced education in classical art skills and training in new media that allows you to specialize in the areas of your choice; then they will leave with a portfolio brimming with work that gets work. '''[[Industrial Design]]''': Ask your grandfather to describe the double-edged safety razor he used as a teen; then, look at the sleek, pivoting, three-bladed razors of today. The function remains the same, the form has changed somewhat, but they sure look different. And, they work a lot better. Think now of snowballing technology, of things that never existed five or ten years ago. Think of new ways to design a television or a computer. Think of automobiles propelled by electricity, the sun, or air vapors. Think of everyday products. How might they look and function tomorrow? Think of a new means of transportation. How it might work? Think hard enough, creatively enough, successfully enough, and you'll think of the Academy of Art University. '''School of [[Interior Architecture]] & [[Design]]''': As an interior designer, you’ll learn furniture design, ergonomics, the psychology of color and lighting and the role of the computer in architecture. While learning your profession, you'll become a Jack-of-all-trades because that's what this life's work requires. You have to have the feel of the graphic designer, the hand-to-eye drawing coordination of the illustrator, the imagination of the industrial designer, the eye of the photographer, the knowledge of the computer artist, the style of the fashion designer, and the soul of the fine artist. '''[[School of Motion Picture]]''': Lights. Camera. Action. At the Academy of Art University's School of Motion Pictures & Television, students will learn the ins and outs of all three in infinite detail. And, they will learn them in a "real world" movie studio setting where momentum brings people together to turn the theoretical into the practical.
They will experiment, but under the guidance of people who have been there, people currently working in the industry, people who know that flights of fancy are the foundation of the future, but budgets are now. What's more, they will be working with the same equipment used by major film studios and video production companies. They will have access to the latest in computer-assisted effects and animation. They will be part of the most complex, best-equipped film school in America. With the skills they learn here, students can direct themselves into an exciting range of professions that produce a very rewarding living. '''[[Photography]]''': Light, shadow, f-stops, film, and shutter speeds can be learned anywhere. The Academy's photography program will teach students how to develop a concept and create a personal touch, a unique style. Sure, they will learn the technical stuff. But, that's not the stuff of greatness. Seeing the core, sensing the essence, softening the hard, and steeling the soft: that's what this training is all about. They will leave with a portfolio that truly captures the conceptual thinker behind the camera. It will show the work of a unique artist who inspires awe with the job done, because the job is done right.




== '''HOUSING''' ==
== '''HOUSING''' ==


The Academy owns many buildings that it has converted into dormitories. Though it guarantees housing to all students, the rates charged for this housing are higher than at most other colleges in the Bay Area.
Academy of Art University has guaranteed housing. Facilities are available for both Graduate and Undergraduate students. There is a free Academy shuttle service that will take students to all campus locations. There is wireless internet available in all facilities, free for all students to use. It is a slow connection however. All campus housing buildings are located in San Francisco, with most facilities located downtown close to campus academic buildings.


==
==
'''GENERAL INFORMATION''' ==
'''GENERAL INFORMATION''' ==


Rather than being centered within a unified campus, the university holds classes in a number of buildings, most of which are within a few blocks of each other in downtown San Francisco. There are classes in Several of the buildings, which are significant historical structures; in some cases, bought by the university to preserve them from demolition or commercial redevelopment. There are eleven student dormitories. Some dormitories are coed, some are not, and some occupy structures built in the early [[20th Century]]. The university also has a limited number of student apartments. Residence facilities and all academic buildings are linked by an extensive school shuttle bus system, free to students, that runs both daytime and evening routes.
The university holds classes in a number of buildings, most of which are within a few blocks of each other in downtown San Francisco. There are classes in several of the buildings, which are significant historical structures; in some cases, bought by the university to preserve them from demolition or commercial redevelopment. There are eleven student dormitories. Some dormitories are coed, some are not, and some occupy structures built in the early [[20th Century]]. The university also has a limited number of student apartments. Residence facilities and all academic buildings are linked by an extensive school shuttle bus system, free to students, that runs both daytime and evening routes.


In the summer of [[2005]], the university purchased St. Brigid's Church on Van Ness Avenue from the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco. The church was first opened as a parish in 1864 as a small wooden structure set on sand dunes. A large new stone church on the same site was completed in 1904 and survived the [[1906 San Francisco Earthquake]] and fires with relatively minor damage when a desperate fight finally stopped the spreading of such fires across the street from the church on Van Ness Avenue. The church had been closed by the Archdiocese in 1994 as a cost-saving measure. After a seismic restoration forecast to cost $7,000,000 [[USD]], the university plans to use the church as a meeting hall, and its basement gymnasium will provide a sports facility for the school. Arrangement for access for former St. Brigid's parishioners (who have fought to re-open the church ever since its closure in 1994) have apparently been discussed, but no conclusions have been reached.
In the summer of [[2005]], the university purchased St. Brigid's Church on Van Ness Avenue from the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco. The church was first opened as a parish in 1864 as a small wooden structure set on sand dunes. A large new stone church on the same site was completed in 1904 and survived the [[1906 San Francisco Earthquake]] and fires with relatively minor damage when a desperate fight finally stopped the spreading of such fires across the street from the church on Van Ness Avenue. The church had been closed by the Archdiocese in 1994 as a cost-saving measure. After a seismic restoration forecast to cost $7,000,000 [[USD]], the university plans to use the church as a meeting hall, and its basement gymnasium will provide a sports facility for the school. Arrangement for access for former St. Brigid's parishioners (who have fought to re-open the church ever since its closure in 1994) have apparently been discussed, but no conclusions have been reached.


The University is accredited by the [[Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools]] (ACICS). The [[Foundation of Interior Design Education and Research]] (FIDER) accredits the Interior Architecture & Design School with a BFA degree as a professional level program. The [[National Architectural Accrediting Board]] (NAAB) has granted the School of Architecture candidacy status to offer a two year Master of Architecture degree.
The Academy is not currently accredited by the [[Western Association of Schools and Colleges]]. The University is accredited by the [[Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools]] (ACICS). The [[Foundation of Interior Design Education and Research]] (FIDER) accredits the Interior Architecture & Design School with a BFA degree as a professional level program. The [[National Architectural Accrediting Board]] (NAAB) has granted the School of Architecture candidacy status to offer a two year Master of Architecture degree.


== External links ==
== External links ==
*[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/03/25/MNGI85QTK11.DTL]*
*[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/gate/archive/2004/09/14/carollloyd.DTL]*
*[http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/13/opinion/13CHAB.html?ex=1397188800&en=e08e585ef55c305e&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND]*
* [http://www.academyart.edu San Francisco Academy of Art University]
* [http://www.academyart.edu San Francisco Academy of Art University]
* [http://www.forbes.com/prnewswire/feeds/prnewswire/2005/05/27/prnewswire200505271730PR_NEWS_B_NET_DC_DCF041.html More than 200 Art & Design Leaders Attend Academy of Art University 'Spring Show']
* [http://www.forbes.com/prnewswire/feeds/prnewswire/2005/05/27/prnewswire200505271730PR_NEWS_B_NET_DC_DCF041.html More than 200 Art & Design Leaders Attend Academy of Art University 'Spring Show']

Revision as of 08:07, 1 December 2006

Academy of Art University
Academy logo
TypePrivate
Established1929
PresidentDr. Elisa Stephens
Undergraduates7000
Postgraduates2500
Location
San Francisco
,
CA
,
USA
CampusUrban
AthleticsIntramural YMCA Classes, Soccer Team
Websitewww.academyart.edu

The Academy of Art University, a for-profit institution owned by the Stephens Institute, was founded in San Francisco in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens. Since then, it has expanded to occupy over 30 buildings in the downtown area and with an enrollment of approximately 9,500 students, it is the largest art and design school in the USA.

The Academy offers AA, BFA, MFA, M-Arch, or Certificate programs both online and on campus in 13 majors: Advertising, Animation & Visual Effects, Architecture (MFA & M-Arch only), Computer Arts/New Media, Digital Arts & Communications, Fashion, Fine Art, Graphic Design, Illustration, Industrial Design, Interior Architecture & Design, Motion Pictures & Television, and Photography. Because the school is not curently accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, its BFA's are not accepted as evidence of adequate scholarly or artistic preparation by many graduate programs and its units are not generally accepted for tranfer to other four-year universities. The Academy is in the process of re-applying for WASC accreditation, which it has failed to earn in the past.


HISTORY

The Academy of Art University was established in San Francisco in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens, a Creative Director for Sunset Magazine. Assisted by his wife, Mrs. Clara Stephens, he opened the new school in a rented loft at 215 Kearny Street to teach advertising art. In 1933 the curriculum was expanded to include Fashion Illustration, and in 1936 a Fine Art Department was added. In 1951, after graduating from Stanford University, Richard A. Stephens took over the Presidency from his parents. His tenure led to the expansion of the Academy from an enrollment of fifty students in two rented loft spaces to a 5,200 student body, with continued expansion of department majors available. In 1966 the school was incorporated and granted authority to offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education of the State of California. The graduate program was inaugurated in 1977 and approved by 1983. Around this time, Academy faculty formed a union that was certified by the National Labor Relations Board as the California Federation of Art Teachers. After many attempts by the school to prevent the union from becoming active, and a proctracted legal battle, the National Labor Relations Board prevailed in federal court and secured back pay for many instructors who had been illegally terminated according to the terms of the National Labor Relations Act. Elisa Stephens, the granddaughter of the school’s founder, succeeded her father as President of the Academy of Art University in 1992. Stephens has been committed to establishing the Academy's brand identity. Like her father, Stephens has been embroiled in controversy. In December, Stephens moved to expel a student for having written a story in a creative writing class that featured a male protagonist who was a serial killer and who mutilated his female victims. Stevens, at the suggestion of the Academy's Vice President of Academic Affairs, Sue Rowley, arranged to have the student criminally profiled and, finally, expelled. The student's instructor, Jan Richman, a poet and former recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts grant, was subsequently terminated, as was Alan Kaufman, another instructor, who organized protests of both the student's expulsion and of Richman's termination. Pullitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon wrote an editorial for the New York Times protesting the school's actions and calling for a re-evaluation of censorship and artistic freedom. PEN Faulkner president Salman Rushdie wrote a letter in protest of the school's censorship and labor policies. Neither Chabon's editorial nor Rushdie's letter were acknowledged by Stephens, who later arranged to censor and shut down a student newspaper that was covering the events and calling for the formation of a democratically elected student government.



HOUSING

The Academy owns many buildings that it has converted into dormitories. Though it guarantees housing to all students, the rates charged for this housing are higher than at most other colleges in the Bay Area.

== GENERAL INFORMATION ==

The university holds classes in a number of buildings, most of which are within a few blocks of each other in downtown San Francisco. There are classes in several of the buildings, which are significant historical structures; in some cases, bought by the university to preserve them from demolition or commercial redevelopment. There are eleven student dormitories. Some dormitories are coed, some are not, and some occupy structures built in the early 20th Century. The university also has a limited number of student apartments. Residence facilities and all academic buildings are linked by an extensive school shuttle bus system, free to students, that runs both daytime and evening routes.

In the summer of 2005, the university purchased St. Brigid's Church on Van Ness Avenue from the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco. The church was first opened as a parish in 1864 as a small wooden structure set on sand dunes. A large new stone church on the same site was completed in 1904 and survived the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and fires with relatively minor damage when a desperate fight finally stopped the spreading of such fires across the street from the church on Van Ness Avenue. The church had been closed by the Archdiocese in 1994 as a cost-saving measure. After a seismic restoration forecast to cost $7,000,000 USD, the university plans to use the church as a meeting hall, and its basement gymnasium will provide a sports facility for the school. Arrangement for access for former St. Brigid's parishioners (who have fought to re-open the church ever since its closure in 1994) have apparently been discussed, but no conclusions have been reached.

The Academy is not currently accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The University is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS). The Foundation of Interior Design Education and Research (FIDER) accredits the Interior Architecture & Design School with a BFA degree as a professional level program. The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) has granted the School of Architecture candidacy status to offer a two year Master of Architecture degree.



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