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Art Institute of Atlanta recently announced that it will be shutting down permanently, just a week before the start of a new semester. According to its website, it will close its doors on Saturday, September 30, 2023, along with seven locations within its system, including the one in Houston, Texas.
While the website does not give a reason for the abrupt closure, WSB-TV reported that students received emails stating that the decision came after taking into account a series of events, both external and internal, that occurred over the past ten years.
The website also prompted students to complete their education at a different school and came with links to resources and a list of institutes with comparable programs and courses.
Additionally, the school was working with numerous partners to help with student transfer. A transfer implies that the students can use their academic credit earned at the Art Institute toward the completion of their program at a different school. However, it added that "there is no formal transfer of credit agreements in place" at the moment.
Students and staff were blindsided by the closing of the Art Institute
According to Rough Draft Atlanta, the Art Institute in Atlanta was established in 1949 and provided courses in design, media arts, fashion, and culinary fields.
As per a Facebook post by Anne Perry, a faculty member teaching at the Dallas Campus, she was shocked at the news. Just hours before receiving the message about the school's shuttering, she met a student on Zoom and spoke of having a great upcoming semester.
Perry's post noted the reason stated in the institute's announcement email:
"The colleges, which already were dealing with the legacy challenges that arose under prior ownership, were unable to absorb the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on schools teaching hands-on and equipment-intensive programs such as culinary arts and fashion design."
Two students, Chyla Lewis and Michele Carter, who joined the Art Institute of Atlanta in April, told WSB-TV that they too received no prior warning. They expressed concern over tuition and credit transfers, with Carter saying:
"It’s like the rug has been snatched up from under us with no information."
Carter further added that added that several faculty members were panicking about finding employment, especially just days before a new semester.
Deidra Dukes, the mother of a student at the art institute, told Fox5Atlanta, that she was "upset and mad" at the news. Her daughter was only left with one class before she graduated.
Another upset student, Aireona Becton, told Fox5Atlanta that she felt the school knew this was going to happen, yet they continued to allow students to sign up for financial aid.
"(Art Institute) just took our money, and now we are trying to figure out where the hell we go from here," she added.
This is not the first time schools within the Art Institute system have shut down. Back in 2018, 18 schools were closed after low enrollment numbers. In addition to campuses in Atlanta and Houston, those in Austin, Dallas, Miami, San Antonio, Tampa, and Virginia Beach are also permanently closing.
To ease possible transfers, the institute stated it would mail each student five copies of their transcripts free of charge from October 1, 2023, onwards.
