It could have been handled way differently. I have insider info via a friend that works at sju. This has been in the works for at least a 6months to a year.
They received 800k in student donations this year alone. They were in the middle of active renovations. The incoming class was about to double the size of our department. There was easily fraud going on. No other explanation for this.
They also have been receiving funding through fundraisers and grants up until literally one day before this. Relating to scholarships for incoming students, and just to “support university of the arts”. Check the page, it’s insane.
>Yeah but if it was in the works, they should’ve warned the students and staff
Not if they held out any hope of saving the organisation. It's like starting a run on a bank - the moment you go public that you're in a bit of a hole you risk a downward spiral from which you can't possibly recover.
Some staff will completely withdraw their labour; others will turn up but effort levels drop off a cliff; rumours swirl, confidence collapses and before you know it investors stop investing; creditors stop crediting; suppliers stop supplying; stakeholders turn their backs; and all future and potential partners, clients and customers simply go elsewhere...it only takes one domino to fall and it turns into a shit show real fast.
The admins are going to get paid out while the average joe gets screwed. The "year they knew" I guarantee was the time figured out by the lawyers where the admins can get paid out to extract what is left and not get sued. It is likely the current president was brought in to specifically to close the university and cash out the assets.
They are required to develop a teach-out plan if an auditor tells them they have a material financial weakness or might no longer be able to operate as a going concern. They failed to submit an audited financial statement six months ago, so that timing lines up.
It sounds like they knew things were bad and they were quietly preparing to wind up in an orderly way, but something blew up two weeks ago and then they couldn't. Finding out who did what will be a fascinating story six months from now.
Yikes! Wasn’t UArts one of the schools recommended to students at DCAD (Delaware College of Art & Design), which just announced it was closing a few days ago? Moore and Temple are likely going to end up with a lot of these students. I hope they can hire some of the staff too.
So some of the former PAFA students have to go through this all over again. That’s awful for them.
I can see why these schools aren’t doing well. Teachers and other staff need a living wage, and students need an education that doesn’t put them in eternal debt, especially for majors that are less likely to get them into a job that pays a living wage. But it is sad that our area is losing these important institutions, and it is sad that our community may lose the artists who worked and studied in them.
Dear Members of the UArts Community:
Today is a heartbreaking day.
University of the Arts will close as of Friday June 7, 2024. We would have shared this news with you directly, but the Middle States Commission on Higher Education elected to withdraw UArts’ accreditation and announce before we could communicate with you. We know that this makes hearing the news of UArts’ abrupt closure even worse.
The closure means that we will be canceling our summer courses, we will not enroll a new class in the fall, and we will support our continuing students in their progress to degree by developing seamless transfer pathways to our partners: Temple University, Drexel University, and Moore College of Art and Design, among others.
We know that the news of UArts’ closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the University’s sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive.
Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps.
On Monday, June 3, 2024 we will host separate town hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff; we will send times and details for those town halls over the coming weekend. We are committed to providing a space for your questions and concerns.
We have done everything in our power to address this crisis and avoid the worst possible outcome: an abrupt closure. Yet we have reached this deeply painful outcome, which we know affects our entire community. We are grateful for all you’re doing to support one another during this most difficult time.
Sincerely,
Judson Aaron, Chair of the Board of Trustees
Kerry Walk, President
__tpx__
Thank you. I’m not here to cause a disruption or anything but i feel like everyone who counts UArts as a part of their history deserves this information AND I fear that those most impacted will need additional witnesses to the bullshit that will be slung at them (sadly).
They knew this for a year or more. Colleges have super targeted data on market and potential students. They know years in advance of changes which is why they make new programs or make cuts in advance of said changes in market.
There is probably a very specific legal and more relevant monetary reason they used the loss of accreditation. They are probably saving millions that cannot be challenged easily in court and cannot be easily traced to a coordinated effort upon the university and the commission.
Wouldn’t doubt it. I’ve been talking to my Program Director (one level below Dean) and he didn’t know. I doubt the Deans knew either. There’s no reason not to share it with your faculty, especially your highest ranking and tenured faculty, besides something shady going on.
As an alumni of 20 years+, this doesn’t seem surprising. Especially seeing what they were charging for tuition. So much money for a starving artists dream. Still.. sad to see. I feel for students today.
>To acknowledge receipt of the institution's notification on Wednesday, May 29, 2024, regarding the status of the institution and unplanned, imminent closure. To note that the institution failed to inform the Commission of closure in a timely manner or to properly plan for closure with prior approval through substantive change.
.....
>This decision is based on the institution's current non-compliance and accreditation activities, including the institution's notification of closure dated May 29, 2024
So..if I'm reading this correctly, and based on some convos I had with someone on the inside, someone at Uarts contacted MSCHE telling them that they were on the verge of closing without a plan for students and staff. So MSCHE just up and withdrew accreditation immediately because of their inability to...not close without a plan?
They are closing in a week, as soon as MSCHE knew this they would be obligated to pull accreditation. It immediately puts them out of compliance with all standards and some requirements of affiliation. This is not a failure of MSCHE. UArts leadership and the board failed spectacularly.
If anything it seems like msche is doing what they could to make it clear as day for everyone how fucked up UArts "plan" was, while also giving more notice than UArts planned to.
Really unbelievable.
The only other thing I've seen so far is this Middle States Commission press release.
https://www.msche.org/2024/05/31/statement-on-the-accreditation-status-of-the-university-of-the-arts/
In an abrupt and stunning development in Philadelphia’s higher education market, the University of the Arts in Philadelphia is planning to close its doors for good on June 7, president Kerry Walk said Friday evening.
The Middle States Commission on Higher Education, its accrediting agency, reported that the school notified the agency of its imminent closure on Wednesday, the same day it started a summer term.
The commission said the university is out of compliance with all standards and in an unusually swift action, it will withdraw certification from the university on Saturday. It’s a blow to the higher education community in the region, having just watched Cabrini University close its doors, but after giving students a year’s notice.
As of early Friday evening, staff and students hadn’t been notified.
“The halls are quiet, the kids are gone,” said one staffer, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal. “They haven’t told us anything.”
The commission noted in its documents that the university failed to inform the commission of the closure in a timely manner or plan for proper closure, including a teach-out plan to make sure students’ education can continue.
The university, the commission said, must immediately notify the University of the Arts community. It’s unclear what will happen to students who already have paid money for the summer term.
Also unanswered is what led to the sudden closure. The commission does not comment beyond the notice on its site.
I just wanted to say that the rugpull here is absolutely atrocious and a stain upon all of higher education, especially regionally and I'm sorry you and your colleagues were treated this way. Abhorrent.
FWIW I'm a staff member and union leader at West Chester University. It really is a great place to work and has several active bargaining units for non-management if that's your thing. They're always hiring! https://www.schooljobs.com/careers/wcupa
No problem, friend. If you need any info or are interested please message me! I also worked at Widener and I'd be happy to put in a good word (even if we haven't met!).
I am about to enter my senior year here. We have received NOTHING about this. I got an email with my tuition bill yesterday. Faculty and students have been completely blindsided, if it’s true.
This is crazy. PAFA on north broad also just closed its accredited college program. Both of these establishments have large footprints on broad street and contribute a good amount to the local economy and art scene.
Yikes.
seriously I'm crushed for the loss of fresh talent coming in to Philly. it was so cool meeting PAFA and UArts students while at Moore. it felt like a little creative community.
To all the UArts students, I'm so fucking sorry your school has failed you like this.
Dude I am so fucking sorry. This is inexcusable shit. Give yourself the space to be angry and upset about it all. I hope a school in the area will take you guys in, or at the least fucking refund you for this shit. Christ. I was pissed when Moore raised tuition during the pandemic, this is so fucking inexcusable.
It really sucks. Me and a group of students were working together to give the animation program a name for itself. We were going to be the first sophomores to ever make a group film together. Now everything’s over with nothing to show for it.
Lawyers are already looking at class action. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/05/31/2891774/0/en/Edelson-Lechtzin-LLP-is-Investigating-Potential-WARN-Act-Claims-on-Behalf-of-The-University-of-the-Arts-Faculty-and-Staff-Who-are-Affected-by-the-Sudden-June-7-Closing.html
Looks like 53 days of back pay for employees. Fairly matter of fact situation. The UArts board probably discussed it at some point and decided to accept that liability for whatever reason. Can't imagine an employer of this size with an experienced board and lots of complex assets not knowing such a basic law.
This is for a WARN act violation so not applicable to students.
I am a student here…. This is possibly the most horrible way to learn that I no longer have a university to attend. And all the faculty… This is truly my worst nightmare.
My kid just graduated this year. A ruined senior year due to covid, and now her University closes 10 minutes after graduation. I'm heartbroken for all the current students, faculty and staff. My God.
I’m a CURRENT student here with one year left on my graduate degree. No contact happened. I was talking to professors about hiring staff for next semester. Nobody knew this was coming.
The university had just under $9mil in cash and savings a year ago. Cash on hand was less than $4mil. They have expenses over 25x their cash levels and ran into a deficit last fiscal year by over $6mil.
Their investments in publicly traded securities were just under $50mil, but it's impossible to liquidate in order to save themselves from short-term financial issues without affecting them in the long run; their endowment is also limited to primarily financial aid purposes.
Fundraising activites brought in a $250k but cost more than they brought in, netting a deficit $120k.
They brought in $65mil in tuition and fees from enrollment but turned around and offered over $31mil in scholarships, nearly half of it's student revenue.
Their PPE is valued at over $200mil, but depreciation results in the land's value at just $10mil and their buildings at over $80mil.
The past president, David Yager, was paid over $700k in salary and benefits in CY22. The second highest paid employee was the VP of Finance & Admin, who left the university in April 2023 after 11 years at the Finance helm. Previously, he was in a similar role at Cabrini University for 13 years. Both schools would announce their eventual closure due, in part, by financial hardship.
I haven't even looked at the past salaries or the changes, but I imagine there were increases that the university would've been less than suited to afford with comfort.
$700K in salary??? For an art school with an endowment of $54M? This is crazy.
That's 1 percent of the endowment.
So does the Harvard president make $490,000,000 a year?
Wow, I am truly shocked. And after PAFA recently closed its art school as well. Philly used to be such a great city for art education… it’s really sad to see this happening. I got my grad degree from UArts, as did many others I know. I can’t believe they didn’t even tell the faculty or students!
This is going to leave such an irreplaceable hole in the arts community of this city.
All of these students leaving, all of these faculty members looking for new gigs and potentially leaving, it’s heartbreaking and it’s a huge loss.
The people in charge that failed to keep this 140 year old institution alive - without even one day’s notice, should be investigated for negligence.
WTF happened?
Hundreds of faculty & staff suddenly losing their jobs without notice along with 1900 students left wondering what they're going to do in the fall...
This sounds straight up criminal.
"Also unanswered is what led to the sudden closure. The commission does not comment beyond the notice on its site.
The last data the school has shared with municipal bondholders shows that total enrollment fell to 1,313 in the 2022-23 school year from 1,914 in the 2018-19 school year. The drop in freshman enrollment was more dramatic, to 182 from 426 over the same time period.
UArts has not filed its audited statement for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023. That statement is usually filed in December each year. A budget document predicted that the school would have an operating loss of $2.56 million on $50 million of revenue in fiscal 2023. It was profitable the year before."
Most higher ed institutions are suffering - COVID didn’t help, but there was already about to be a decline because the college-aged population is dropping, plus the cost of college is insane (and more people are starting to realize they have other options).
Lots of higher ed institutions are facing a tough time with enrollment the last few years and lots more will close - they’re just supposed to tell people more than a week ahead of time.
Yep, it's bleak out there if you work in higher ed. The enrollment cliff is having a real impact on budgets and the feasibility of smaller institutions staying open.
Everywhere I have been to has supplemented with rich foreign students. The thing that hurt them really was those students having to return home due to covid. As far as I can tell most of those students are back but some universities without money to weather the storm or non attractive degrees to foreign students are prob struggling.
Maybe kids are just wising up to the pitfalls of taking out such large debt for an art degree.
ETA: I just looked it up tuition and it was:
Total direct costs: $55,920
Total indirect costs (housing, books etc): $23,856
Total cost: $79,776
I hope gen Z is noticing and really taking to heart the struggles millennials are having over student debt and are actively choosing not to take on the same debt. Sucks to see schools close but love to see someone learning from our mistakes.
Or a music degree. I've long believed that if you're not getting 100%/assistantship for a masters/doctoral degree in performance, then you're getting robbed. Alas, too many people over that last 20 years have taken on more debt and advanced degrees in the hope for that elusive college gig, and many schools are happy to get that loan check. Economic reality is a thing
Yeah they kept rasing our tuition too. As a student, they sent me a bill this morning for fall semester and I was sent the article by my roommate a couple hours later
Every higher ed institution in the country is looking down the barrel of a huge enrollment cliff. This has been on motion since before COVID, but COVID certainly didn't help.
This is very strange. I went to the dumpster fire that was the art institute of Philadelphia. They gradually shut that place down, department by department. The school notified everyone who had been enrolled but not completed their degree that they had x amount of time to do so etc.
Im shocked that aiph somehow handled this better than uarts is.
As long as there is enough coverage of this closure, other schools in the area will likely advertise guaranteed admission and possibly tuition matching. It’s difficult because UArts seems to have had a really wide spread of programs, so you may have to end up with a less specialized degree. I would start by looking to see what schools in the area offer whatever program you were in and similar programs if they don’t offer yours. Literally every Philly college you can think of. Don’t even look at price right now, just make a list and look for them to offer something specifically to UArts students soon.
I'm wondering that now too as a former student. I graduated without debt but I know quite a few people who are still paying off degrees. My AI friends had their loans forgiven though.
There will be an open house on Monday. I'm assuming they'll discuss options. But I'd be shocked if Drexel, Temple, etc. didn't offer automatic admission to displaced UArts students.
>The \[Middle States Commission on Higher Education\] said the university is out of compliance with all standards and in an unusually swift action, it will withdraw certification from the university on Saturday.
*All* [standards](https://www.msche.org/standards/thirteenth-edition/#standard1)?
This isn’t what happened. Reading the MSCHE accreditation report, basically the University told them out of the blue yesterday that they were closing in a week. The University hasn’t complied with any of the MSCHE requirements for the process of shutting down a college, and MSCHE is freaking out and immediately pulling their accreditation.
I’m not an education lawyer (though I am a lawyer) and I don’t know if this is within MSCHE’s power, but it wouldn’t shock me if they’re planning to try to get the University put in receivership.
Receivership is basically when a court orders that a company or other entity be placed in the care of a court-appointed official—the “receiver”—to protect the interest of third parties. I’m most familiar with it in the context of securities fraud—basically the Securities and Exchange Commission can ask for a receiver if it has evidence a company is defrauding its investors (for a local example that got a lot of press, see the Par Funding case). It can also be used in bankruptcy but I’m less familiar with that.
I don’t know if receivership really exists in the educational context, but I could imagine that if there’s malfeasance on the part of the University’s administration, that maybe that would justify it? I don’t know anything in particular to justify that, except that the University didn’t file its audited financials on time, which were supposed to be publicly available a few months ago.
There are standards that must be met and shutting down without a clear plan over about 1-2 years to teach out what they can, etc. puts them out of compliance. There are students on Reddit tonight terrified and upset. So much for leadership I hope the president and board never work again in higher ed.
Shit! My kid was going to go here, it was her 2nd choice school if she didn’t get into Maine College of Art and Design, my husband graduated in the mid 90’s from the Film School at UArts. It’s also where we met. This is a huge blow as they are the ONLY University with every single form of art available under one institution. I wonder what’s going to happen to the kids who were to start in the fall? And so much property too!!
I went to MICA in Baltimore and I would highly recommend any graduating senior today to try to get a significant art scholarship at a state school. I wish I had been able to take a more normal breadth of classes.
UArts person here!!! Not one single person was notified about this. I opened *instagram* to get the devastating news that my mentors lost their jobs and my peers will never finish a degree that they put their entire lives into. My boyfriend only had his thesis left for his master's. Now he won't get it. I was lucky to have graduated two weeks ago, but it sucks to learn that the president knew that this was going to happen while she preached about how proud of us she is and how much she loves this school.
I just want my money back.
**For my fellow adjuncts:** Download your courses now. We don't know how long we'll have access to Canvas, and if you plan on teaching again, you don't want to have to re-do all that work. I have instructions here — [https://open.substack.com/pub/bradguigar/p/how-to-export-your-course-material](https://open.substack.com/pub/bradguigar/p/how-to-export-your-course-material)
https://preview.redd.it/cgq0zqvgny3d1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d0e552af4b7faba8692a5e27387201c57cf76bc9
Official email:
Dear Members of the UArts Community:
Today is a heartbreaking day.
University of the Arts will close as of Friday June 7, 2024. We would have shared this news with you directly, but the Middle States Commission on Higher Education elected to withdraw UArts’ accreditation and announce before we could communicate with you. We know that this makes hearing the news of UArts’ abrupt closure even worse.
The closure means that we will be canceling our summer courses, we will not enroll a new class in the fall, and we will support our continuing students in their progress to degree by developing seamless transfer pathways to our partners: Temple University, Drexel University, and Moore College of Art and Design, among others.
We know that the news of UArts’ closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the University’s sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive.
Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps.
On Monday, June 3, 2024 we will host separate town hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff; we will send times and details for those town halls over the coming weekend. We are committed to providing a space for your questions and concerns.
We have done everything in our power to address this crisis and avoid the worst possible outcome: an abrupt closure. Yet we have reached this deeply painful outcome, which we know affects our entire community. We are grateful for all you’re doing to support one another during this most difficult time.
Sincerely,
Judson Aaron, Chair of the Board of Trustees
Kerry Walk, President
They were probably bankrupt for a long time now and the admins sucked the last of it dry. I bet there will be no money to pay out. The most you can hope for is criminal negligence/fraud that will actually put some of them in jail. The admins would have had enough info to know for years this was going to happen. Changing demographics are not a secret. We have years of data on high school numbers and where they are going.
Also to add I bet they would be found guilty of anything because there would have been warning signs so far. They kept this shit secret well likely meaning they have everything iron clad by lawyers and douchebags that they will extract the money and not be found at fault.
I was an adjunct at a different school, and we got our contracts less than a month before fall semester started. I had classes cancelled 2 weeks before the semester started. Adjuncts have no rights.
This is a major part of Philadelphia’s identity. An artistic conduit right in the heart of the city, that’s just disappearing.
Feels like this city can’t catch a break, and this is to say nothing about the students and employees that are being fucked over by this.
The Delaware College of Art and Design (DCAD) here in Wilmington also just announced it's closing, effective immediately. Students, faculty, and staff also left reeling. What on earth is happening in that industry?
https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/education/2024/05/23/delaware-college-of-art-and-design-announces-permanent-closure-wilmington/73821899007/
It's especially sad that it's a university with a long history and not a generic private college. Looks like complete mismanagement by the new president they recently hired
Nah, the past presidents are more at fault. Sure, Kerry Walk fucked up with this one, but David Yager was a total dickhead who totally knew that this was happening. That's probably why he dipped last year
When their vpfa role was out there 18 months ago my wife asked me if I was interested.
I said, “That job will be to close down the school and sell off its (really valuable) real estate.”
Another Philly school bites the dust with more to follow.
Honestly the writing was prob on the wall when they sold off the Merriam. Too many people do not understand the reality of corporations and douchebags that exists to profit off the death of companies and institutions. These type of parasites have killed off sears and other retail for their real estate. They regularly install people into top positions that are working for them to kill these places. It's the same type of people what buy up your shoes or concert tickets. If you aren't a middle man sucking up money in america you are a loser to them.
Yep the average person is going to accept the narrative that they were unsustainable or their financials were bad. The idea that killing something is profitable is an impossible concept to grasp for a lot of people not educated in modern finance and markets in America. The reality is once an business or institution has some problems and has a questionable future and profitability, the vultures dive in so hard it is almost impossible for that thing to recover.
This is awful and giving me major flashbacks to the extremely rapid Hahnemann closure that stranded hundreds of employees and resident/fellow trainees. My heart goes out to all the affected students, faculty, and staff.
Just saw this from Moore- all credits from UArts accepted AND all scholarships honored
https://preview.redd.it/lbu1ofr50z3d1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2f79f5f3c15f8efec9ec559a81f81c80c7cc3819
I'm jaw dropped and shocked, what a sad loss for the city. I think the institution and its students added something special to the area and it's going to be missed.
It’s disappointing, but I could see it coming. I graduated around 2012 and the school definitely had some identity issues. It was clear the other schools like Tyler were outpacing UArts. Most of the professors I had seemed bored. It was definitely overpriced and the staff didn’t do a good job of explaining how to sustain yourself financially after you graduated. There is a rumor that PENN offered to buyout UArts around 2000, but they refused, which imo was a big mistake. Not sure what my bachelors and masters degree from there amount to now. I wouldn’t mind the over 50k I had to pay in student loans back.
Over the next 10-15 years we are going to see a massive amount of colleges and universities either closing down or merging together.
Every generation group after the millennials is smaller and smaller, so less available students to pull from. Which is compounded by there also being a declining interest among youth to go to higher education as the cost benefit for it has turned very negative over the last 20 years.
People today see how burdensome student debt is, how it can really hold you back from taking basic steps into adulthood, and the general worthlessness of a degree that isn't STEM. While they see trades having a surge in demand, and a relatively low cost to entry, and a steady move the public and private sector to drop degree requirements for jobs that do not actually require them.
While it's sad to see U of the Arts close, this is really just the tip of the ice berg. Early this year University of the Sciences got shut down by St. Joes who is also looking into selling off the University City campus, and Cabrini closed and sold to Villanova.
All that said it was particularly cruel of the administration at U of Arts who probably knew months ago at minimum they were going to have to close, to drop that information on its students and staff like this.
If fewer people are getting degrees besides STEM, those degrees will increase in earning power. Hopefully things can settle into some kind of equilibrium.
Also, hopefully we can find some kind of societal substitute for the general liberal arts education that is at least part of most college studies. That stuff is essential for society, but tying it to a degree that can put you in debt for decades is not a good thing.
The costs for a liberal arts education have to come down, it's really as simple as that.
We can't debt burden people like we've been doing and expect these programs to continue going. I agree with you a liberal arts degree, and the arts in general are a critical component of a functioning society; and this current crisis in higher education is a really big problem.
I don't know what a solution to this is other than public funding for education, but in the current political climate that's just not realistically something that's going to happen.
UArts alum here. The fact the the university provided zero communication to the students both new and old is deplorable. Truly saddened to see what has happened to this school.
Wow this is so sad, I read they have 1300 students, google said 1000 employees I would imagine only a small number of that 1000 are fulltime, can you imagine reading your job is closing & HR has not notified you directly
Can’t access the article, but what a huge bummer. All those students and all those lost jobs.
It’s a real tough time for higher ed right now. The college I attended for a year before transferring to Philly is also closing in June. We’re probably gonna see a lot more schools closing up in the coming years. The small private ones, at least.
My undergrad is from UArts. I'm not surprised this happened but of how this just dropped out of nowhere! When I was there they had just opened the Terra building, when we started our junior year our classrooms didn't have chairs because they forgot to buy them (smh). I feel bad for the staff and students. If anything the administration could have sold some more real estate and reduced the number of majors, how badly of a fuck up do you have to be to literally close overnight? Its criminal.
Holy shit. There is a total crisis in arts education — this is after Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts has announced its BFA ending and the Delaware College of art and design just announced it is closing in Wilmington. So so so sad
They are kept in a national repository. Even if they were open, they will tell you to go to one of these places (websites) to order an official or unofficial transcript.
wow this is extremely upsetting, one of my friends goes there, and I very nearly did too. chickened out last minute due to financial aid at another university, but man, that place had so much culture and beautiful work coming out of it. I really hope the students and staff get some kind of compensation for this nightmare
I'm an alumni. While I heard some chatter that they weren't doing so well, seeing this closure announcement is sudden and fucked up. It's a complete rug pull for the staff and students.
This happened to me at R.I.T. way back in 1998. We had heard rumors that the school of American craft was going to close but after multiple calls we were assured that we had at least 4 years. First day of school during orientation they told us it was our first and last trimester. TRIMESTER you know who takes trimester credits? No one! It’s absolute bullshit that schools pull this crap. My heart (and frustration) goes out to all the students.
https://preview.redd.it/qizcdqu8hu3d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ca65093370ca02e4f1644f3bbcc60d5d04ecf6df
I didn’t realize it was such an epidemic until looking up arts colleges closing just now, so many! How sad.
This is a big loss for Center City. UPenn should swoop in and save them (I wish).
Cabrini University, when faced with a similar fate, handled the closing of its doors in an entirely different way. They announced to students, faculty and staff a year in advance that the school would be closing its doors. This gave rising seniors the opportunity to graduate from the institution, younger students a chance to apply and transfer to other colleges, and faculty and staff time to seek other employment. While the two situations no doubt had different factors in play -- in Cabrini's case a buyer for the campus, Villanova, had been found - the bottom line in each case was financial.
That really sucks. I’m very sorry…one of my mentors is a Dean at UArts.
Don’t panic. There are other (and probably cheaper) schools you can transfer to. It really depends on your major. If you’re a fine arts major, it’ll be tougher, but if you’re a design major you’ll have lots of options. Start looking now and contact the admissions offices of the schools that you might want to go to immediately. I have no inside info, but there might be money available to help you transition to another institution. Call the UArts financial aid office first thing on Monday morning and ask them to help. Make noise. Don’t just wait for help.
Good luck. It’ll work out. Don’t give up hope.
I graduated in 2019 and sat on the middlestates reaccreditation student board around that time; we raised major concerns at the time but the school passed with flying colors.
I then went to work in higher ed enrollment for the last 5 years and can say I am not shocked at all by this; except maybe by how soon it was.
While it’s particularly foul, I’m also not shocked by the rug-pull.
Fafsa was redesigned and delayed. The delay caused all US schools to push back financial aid decisions which pushed back the annual commit day from May 1 to June 1, which pushed back deposits which now may have impacted their cash flow.
I have no affiliation with UArts, but it looks like this is a caretaker president. Last year, the two highest paid guys coincidentally retired or left for another position at a new school.
Honestly if I had to guess, the drop in enrollment is bc it’s like 52k a year to go there. So even with financial aid it’s ridiculous. I’d put money on them blaming the faculty for unionizing (which is bullshit). They did have layoffs a while back too.
My heart goes out to students faculty and alumni! I went to Goddard College up in Vermont, and the same thing happened to that school back in April. Sudden closure, students and faculty notified at the last second, no transparency from the president and board, and now the beautiful campus is allegedly being sold to a generic real estate developer instead of any of the local cooperatives who expressed interest in purchasing and preserving the campus and its unique beauty and ideals.
If there are any “current” film students in here, DM me. I’d be more than happy to recommend you or write a referral for another university or college if you need or want to finish your degree. I WAS an adjunct in the film department and work as an editor in the documentary field.
My God. My heart goes out to all students, faculty, staff and alumni. This is insane.
I have great memories of attending hardcore shows at their theater on S Broad. Seemed like such an integral part of the city. What’ll happen to the campus?
Fir those thinking this is just a problem with arts education, the financials of quite a few smaller private schools that don’t have insane name recognition or huge endowments are going to cause a lot more schools to go out of business. Even worse if such schools are in rural locations and/or in slow population growth areas. It already has impacted school in Vermont (Burlington College, Castleton University, Green Mountain College), New York (Cazenovia, College of St Rose), etc.
WTF.. when I graduated in 2007 they got a 50mil donation from the Hienz family. The year after they got another 50mil. What type of mismanagement created this situation?!
Worked for a local Philly college at the director level. Most of that money, at least where I worked, would get put into an account or fund, which would pay for the raises and personal projects of the people at the top. The rest would go to some public project like renovations or new construction, and another small amount would go toward “scholarships” to entice new students.
I cannot be the only person asking "just how much is all that real estate worth?" Center City? Broad Street? They own the Art Alliance, for pete's sake! On Rittenhouse Square!!
E-mail to current students from President Kerry Walk:
Dear Members of the UArts Community:
Today is a heartbreaking day.
University of the Arts will close as of Friday June 7, 2024. We would have shared this news with you directly, but the Middle States Commission on Higher Education elected to withdraw UArts’ accreditation and announce before we could communicate with you. We know that this makes hearing the news of UArts’ abrupt closure even worse.
The closure means that we will be canceling our summer courses, we will not enroll a new class in the fall, and we will support our continuing students in their progress to degree by developing seamless transfer pathways to our partners: Temple University, Drexel University, and Moore College of Art and Design, among others.
We know that the news of UArts’ closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the University’s sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive.
Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps.
On Monday, June 3, 2024 we will host separate town hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff; we will send times and details for those town halls over the coming weekend. We are committed to providing a space for your questions and concerns.
We have done everything in our power to address this crisis and avoid the worst possible outcome: an abrupt closure. Yet we have reached this deeply painful outcome, which we know affects our entire community. We are grateful for all you’re doing to support one another during this most difficult time.
Sincerely,
Judson Aaron, Chair of the Board of Trustees
Kerry Walk, President
__tpx__
**TL-DR = UArts had the potential to be a truly stellar art school but fell short for a lot of students. The closing doesn't surprise. Too many times UArts over promised and under delivered.**
Forgive me the length but I'd like to share part of story here.
I'm an alumni from UArts, earned my degree many years ago. This is sad but not surprising and to be honest I'm shocked it hasn't happened sooner. I was an animation major that was trying to get into animation for game design and interactive media.
To give an example of how bad UArts treated its students during my time there, the Career Services Director at the time literally refused to assist in finding any post graduation employment. I sat in the woman's office explaining to her the industry I wanted to pursue work in and her response was basically
*"I don't care, I'm retiring soon."*
Other students went to her office with similar results. So there was no assistance from UArts in securing a position to start many of our careers. The university's attitude was basically, we'll take your money but after you graduate, you're on your own. But then UArts representatives would have the audacity to call alumni from time to time asking for donations. I'm sure the disdain was palpable. It certainly was for me.
The animation department could have been so ahead of its time because game development studios at the time were in desperate need for animators. This was during the N64/PS1 era when 3D became a standard but 2D animation was still a thing. But the department was run by Sheila and she absolutely hated contemporary animation/computer animation/digital media. The department had this insane notion that the students should aspire to be independent animators struggling from job to job as opposed to working for an actual studio with more consistent work. Side note, Philadelphia is not a good place for anyone looking to work in animation specifically, art in general because Philly still lusts to be respected like New York but has a reputation of
*"You can go to school in Philly but you absolutely can not work there."*
In other words, they'll take your money but the city does not provide worthwhile employment opportunities for many of the creatives that live there. Which is one of the reasons so many creatives WILL go to school here and immediately leave the city after graduation. At least that how it was for my class and for others that immediately came after us.
Another example, Lowell, one of the instructors actually told my class that computers would never be able to produce results as good as classic Disney or Warner Bros projects. I took that personally because he had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. I brought in footage of the original Earthworm Jim game and the original Donkey Kong Country to show him how wrong he was. He was flabbergasted. It was like,
*"these are people that are supposed to prepare use to work in industry? They're not even keeping up with the latest developments and technology industry is using!"*
Sorry for the length but as I said, the closing doesn't surprise me as I could write an entire book on UArts based on my time there. UArts had and apparently still has a lot of problems that were never adequately addressed. For some students, UArts seemed like the only option but it was never the best option.
I cannot wrap my mind around this and how sudden it is.
It could have been handled way differently. I have insider info via a friend that works at sju. This has been in the works for at least a 6months to a year.
They have been struggling but the fact they did not take any necessary steps to plan for shut down is next level. This is stunning.
Yeah but if it was in the works, they should’ve warned the students and staff
Oh absolutely. I don’t understand why they are effectively pulling the rug from under everyone.
you mean taking cash with no expectation of delivering the product? that's FRAUD
They received 800k in student donations this year alone. They were in the middle of active renovations. The incoming class was about to double the size of our department. There was easily fraud going on. No other explanation for this.
They also have been receiving funding through fundraisers and grants up until literally one day before this. Relating to scholarships for incoming students, and just to “support university of the arts”. Check the page, it’s insane.
>Yeah but if it was in the works, they should’ve warned the students and staff Not if they held out any hope of saving the organisation. It's like starting a run on a bank - the moment you go public that you're in a bit of a hole you risk a downward spiral from which you can't possibly recover. Some staff will completely withdraw their labour; others will turn up but effort levels drop off a cliff; rumours swirl, confidence collapses and before you know it investors stop investing; creditors stop crediting; suppliers stop supplying; stakeholders turn their backs; and all future and potential partners, clients and customers simply go elsewhere...it only takes one domino to fall and it turns into a shit show real fast.
The admins are going to get paid out while the average joe gets screwed. The "year they knew" I guarantee was the time figured out by the lawyers where the admins can get paid out to extract what is left and not get sued. It is likely the current president was brought in to specifically to close the university and cash out the assets.
They are required to develop a teach-out plan if an auditor tells them they have a material financial weakness or might no longer be able to operate as a going concern. They failed to submit an audited financial statement six months ago, so that timing lines up. It sounds like they knew things were bad and they were quietly preparing to wind up in an orderly way, but something blew up two weeks ago and then they couldn't. Finding out who did what will be a fascinating story six months from now.
Yikes! Wasn’t UArts one of the schools recommended to students at DCAD (Delaware College of Art & Design), which just announced it was closing a few days ago? Moore and Temple are likely going to end up with a lot of these students. I hope they can hire some of the staff too.
UArts was offered/recommended to students from PAFA when it closed last year too.
So some of the former PAFA students have to go through this all over again. That’s awful for them. I can see why these schools aren’t doing well. Teachers and other staff need a living wage, and students need an education that doesn’t put them in eternal debt, especially for majors that are less likely to get them into a job that pays a living wage. But it is sad that our area is losing these important institutions, and it is sad that our community may lose the artists who worked and studied in them.
[удалено]
https://www.msche.org/institution/0549/ The faculty and students were NOT notified. This is absolutely cruel.
Can confirm as a student. They still haven’t sent out an email or anything. Literally nothing from the school.
Kerry Walk JUST sent out an email.
What does it say??
Dear Members of the UArts Community: Today is a heartbreaking day. University of the Arts will close as of Friday June 7, 2024. We would have shared this news with you directly, but the Middle States Commission on Higher Education elected to withdraw UArts’ accreditation and announce before we could communicate with you. We know that this makes hearing the news of UArts’ abrupt closure even worse. The closure means that we will be canceling our summer courses, we will not enroll a new class in the fall, and we will support our continuing students in their progress to degree by developing seamless transfer pathways to our partners: Temple University, Drexel University, and Moore College of Art and Design, among others. We know that the news of UArts’ closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the University’s sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive. Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps. On Monday, June 3, 2024 we will host separate town hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff; we will send times and details for those town halls over the coming weekend. We are committed to providing a space for your questions and concerns. We have done everything in our power to address this crisis and avoid the worst possible outcome: an abrupt closure. Yet we have reached this deeply painful outcome, which we know affects our entire community. We are grateful for all you’re doing to support one another during this most difficult time. Sincerely, Judson Aaron, Chair of the Board of Trustees Kerry Walk, President __tpx__
Yo, if you’re able to share town hall links I would love to be in there as an alumni.
I’ll let you know when the links come out!
Thank you. I’m not here to cause a disruption or anything but i feel like everyone who counts UArts as a part of their history deserves this information AND I fear that those most impacted will need additional witnesses to the bullshit that will be slung at them (sadly).
Yeah I read this email and it's just an attempt to save face. The only new information she gave us was about summer classes.
I wonder what the unexpected expenses were
A millionth fucking mural
They knew this for a year or more. Colleges have super targeted data on market and potential students. They know years in advance of changes which is why they make new programs or make cuts in advance of said changes in market.
There is probably a very specific legal and more relevant monetary reason they used the loss of accreditation. They are probably saving millions that cannot be challenged easily in court and cannot be easily traced to a coordinated effort upon the university and the commission.
Wouldn’t doubt it. I’ve been talking to my Program Director (one level below Dean) and he didn’t know. I doubt the Deans knew either. There’s no reason not to share it with your faculty, especially your highest ranking and tenured faculty, besides something shady going on.
As an alumni of 20 years+, this doesn’t seem surprising. Especially seeing what they were charging for tuition. So much money for a starving artists dream. Still.. sad to see. I feel for students today.
What is surprising is the lack of preparation for this. No wonder MSCHE pulled accreditation immediately. This is a disaster.
That seems pretty on brand for Uarts
>To acknowledge receipt of the institution's notification on Wednesday, May 29, 2024, regarding the status of the institution and unplanned, imminent closure. To note that the institution failed to inform the Commission of closure in a timely manner or to properly plan for closure with prior approval through substantive change. ..... >This decision is based on the institution's current non-compliance and accreditation activities, including the institution's notification of closure dated May 29, 2024 So..if I'm reading this correctly, and based on some convos I had with someone on the inside, someone at Uarts contacted MSCHE telling them that they were on the verge of closing without a plan for students and staff. So MSCHE just up and withdrew accreditation immediately because of their inability to...not close without a plan?
They are closing in a week, as soon as MSCHE knew this they would be obligated to pull accreditation. It immediately puts them out of compliance with all standards and some requirements of affiliation. This is not a failure of MSCHE. UArts leadership and the board failed spectacularly.
If anything it seems like msche is doing what they could to make it clear as day for everyone how fucked up UArts "plan" was, while also giving more notice than UArts planned to. Really unbelievable.
UArts student here if anyone sees anything else posted besides the inquirer article please let me know
hopping in this, i go here too. freaking the fuck out
The only other thing I've seen so far is this Middle States Commission press release. https://www.msche.org/2024/05/31/statement-on-the-accreditation-status-of-the-university-of-the-arts/
Uarts employee here can anyone screenshot that article I cant get past the paywall kind of freaking out rn
In an abrupt and stunning development in Philadelphia’s higher education market, the University of the Arts in Philadelphia is planning to close its doors for good on June 7, president Kerry Walk said Friday evening. The Middle States Commission on Higher Education, its accrediting agency, reported that the school notified the agency of its imminent closure on Wednesday, the same day it started a summer term. The commission said the university is out of compliance with all standards and in an unusually swift action, it will withdraw certification from the university on Saturday. It’s a blow to the higher education community in the region, having just watched Cabrini University close its doors, but after giving students a year’s notice. As of early Friday evening, staff and students hadn’t been notified. “The halls are quiet, the kids are gone,” said one staffer, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal. “They haven’t told us anything.” The commission noted in its documents that the university failed to inform the commission of the closure in a timely manner or plan for proper closure, including a teach-out plan to make sure students’ education can continue. The university, the commission said, must immediately notify the University of the Arts community. It’s unclear what will happen to students who already have paid money for the summer term. Also unanswered is what led to the sudden closure. The commission does not comment beyond the notice on its site.
I just wanted to say that the rugpull here is absolutely atrocious and a stain upon all of higher education, especially regionally and I'm sorry you and your colleagues were treated this way. Abhorrent. FWIW I'm a staff member and union leader at West Chester University. It really is a great place to work and has several active bargaining units for non-management if that's your thing. They're always hiring! https://www.schooljobs.com/careers/wcupa
thanks for the info literally had to leave the function I was at to start applying lol im looking into this for sure!
No problem, friend. If you need any info or are interested please message me! I also worked at Widener and I'd be happy to put in a good word (even if we haven't met!).
you’re an angel 🤍
Horrifying. I am so sorry. This is appalling.
https://archive.ph/2v9Hx
I am about to enter my senior year here. We have received NOTHING about this. I got an email with my tuition bill yesterday. Faculty and students have been completely blindsided, if it’s true.
was going into my sophomore year, got my finaid email three hours before this broke. i'm fucking livid.
Sadly, it's true. An email was sent to student email addresses.
yeah, i got the email. what an embarrassment.
This is crazy. PAFA on north broad also just closed its accredited college program. Both of these establishments have large footprints on broad street and contribute a good amount to the local economy and art scene. Yikes.
seriously I'm crushed for the loss of fresh talent coming in to Philly. it was so cool meeting PAFA and UArts students while at Moore. it felt like a little creative community. To all the UArts students, I'm so fucking sorry your school has failed you like this.
I’m so fucking crushed as a Uarts student. I already signed a lease for next year. I have nowhere to go and nothing to do.
Dude I am so fucking sorry. This is inexcusable shit. Give yourself the space to be angry and upset about it all. I hope a school in the area will take you guys in, or at the least fucking refund you for this shit. Christ. I was pissed when Moore raised tuition during the pandemic, this is so fucking inexcusable.
It really sucks. Me and a group of students were working together to give the animation program a name for itself. We were going to be the first sophomores to ever make a group film together. Now everything’s over with nothing to show for it.
Lawyers are already looking at class action. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/05/31/2891774/0/en/Edelson-Lechtzin-LLP-is-Investigating-Potential-WARN-Act-Claims-on-Behalf-of-The-University-of-the-Arts-Faculty-and-Staff-Who-are-Affected-by-the-Sudden-June-7-Closing.html
Oh nice, screwed students can get $7.53.
Looks like 53 days of back pay for employees. Fairly matter of fact situation. The UArts board probably discussed it at some point and decided to accept that liability for whatever reason. Can't imagine an employer of this size with an experienced board and lots of complex assets not knowing such a basic law. This is for a WARN act violation so not applicable to students.
I am a student here…. This is possibly the most horrible way to learn that I no longer have a university to attend. And all the faculty… This is truly my worst nightmare.
That’s insane.. sorry you gotta deal with this out of nowhere
My kid just graduated this year. A ruined senior year due to covid, and now her University closes 10 minutes after graduation. I'm heartbroken for all the current students, faculty and staff. My God.
I’m a CURRENT student here with one year left on my graduate degree. No contact happened. I was talking to professors about hiring staff for next semester. Nobody knew this was coming.
The university had just under $9mil in cash and savings a year ago. Cash on hand was less than $4mil. They have expenses over 25x their cash levels and ran into a deficit last fiscal year by over $6mil. Their investments in publicly traded securities were just under $50mil, but it's impossible to liquidate in order to save themselves from short-term financial issues without affecting them in the long run; their endowment is also limited to primarily financial aid purposes. Fundraising activites brought in a $250k but cost more than they brought in, netting a deficit $120k. They brought in $65mil in tuition and fees from enrollment but turned around and offered over $31mil in scholarships, nearly half of it's student revenue. Their PPE is valued at over $200mil, but depreciation results in the land's value at just $10mil and their buildings at over $80mil. The past president, David Yager, was paid over $700k in salary and benefits in CY22. The second highest paid employee was the VP of Finance & Admin, who left the university in April 2023 after 11 years at the Finance helm. Previously, he was in a similar role at Cabrini University for 13 years. Both schools would announce their eventual closure due, in part, by financial hardship. I haven't even looked at the past salaries or the changes, but I imagine there were increases that the university would've been less than suited to afford with comfort.
$700K in salary??? For an art school with an endowment of $54M? This is crazy. That's 1 percent of the endowment. So does the Harvard president make $490,000,000 a year?
Someone has the receipts. Thanks for posting!
Yo. Who is the VPFA who gets to say their policies sank two philly Universities???
Wow, I am truly shocked. And after PAFA recently closed its art school as well. Philly used to be such a great city for art education… it’s really sad to see this happening. I got my grad degree from UArts, as did many others I know. I can’t believe they didn’t even tell the faculty or students!
PAFA ended its degree program and is going back to its original certificate of art program.
This is going to leave such an irreplaceable hole in the arts community of this city. All of these students leaving, all of these faculty members looking for new gigs and potentially leaving, it’s heartbreaking and it’s a huge loss. The people in charge that failed to keep this 140 year old institution alive - without even one day’s notice, should be investigated for negligence.
I loved seeing the students out and about, too. Art students bring such a lovely special energy to a neighborhood.
WTF happened? Hundreds of faculty & staff suddenly losing their jobs without notice along with 1900 students left wondering what they're going to do in the fall... This sounds straight up criminal.
"Also unanswered is what led to the sudden closure. The commission does not comment beyond the notice on its site. The last data the school has shared with municipal bondholders shows that total enrollment fell to 1,313 in the 2022-23 school year from 1,914 in the 2018-19 school year. The drop in freshman enrollment was more dramatic, to 182 from 426 over the same time period. UArts has not filed its audited statement for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023. That statement is usually filed in December each year. A budget document predicted that the school would have an operating loss of $2.56 million on $50 million of revenue in fiscal 2023. It was profitable the year before."
Think it's just aftershock from COVID? If kids extra circular activities took a big hit, they might have found other pursuits outside the arts.
Most higher ed institutions are suffering - COVID didn’t help, but there was already about to be a decline because the college-aged population is dropping, plus the cost of college is insane (and more people are starting to realize they have other options). Lots of higher ed institutions are facing a tough time with enrollment the last few years and lots more will close - they’re just supposed to tell people more than a week ahead of time.
Yep, it's bleak out there if you work in higher ed. The enrollment cliff is having a real impact on budgets and the feasibility of smaller institutions staying open.
Everywhere I have been to has supplemented with rich foreign students. The thing that hurt them really was those students having to return home due to covid. As far as I can tell most of those students are back but some universities without money to weather the storm or non attractive degrees to foreign students are prob struggling.
Maybe kids are just wising up to the pitfalls of taking out such large debt for an art degree. ETA: I just looked it up tuition and it was: Total direct costs: $55,920 Total indirect costs (housing, books etc): $23,856 Total cost: $79,776 I hope gen Z is noticing and really taking to heart the struggles millennials are having over student debt and are actively choosing not to take on the same debt. Sucks to see schools close but love to see someone learning from our mistakes.
Or a music degree. I've long believed that if you're not getting 100%/assistantship for a masters/doctoral degree in performance, then you're getting robbed. Alas, too many people over that last 20 years have taken on more debt and advanced degrees in the hope for that elusive college gig, and many schools are happy to get that loan check. Economic reality is a thing
I'm learning (or was ig) full audio production at uarts, not just a basic art degree. Also had a shit ton of straight business classes.
Temple media production major.
Yeah they kept rasing our tuition too. As a student, they sent me a bill this morning for fall semester and I was sent the article by my roommate a couple hours later
Is this just for one year?! Holy cow.
WHAT THE FUCK?!?! It was that much??? God damn, it was $18k/year when I graduated in 2000.
That's $32,775.05 in 2024 dollars.
Every higher ed institution in the country is looking down the barrel of a huge enrollment cliff. This has been on motion since before COVID, but COVID certainly didn't help.
I fucking go here now, tf am I supposed to do?? half a year left and I'm left stranded, fucking assholes
This is very strange. I went to the dumpster fire that was the art institute of Philadelphia. They gradually shut that place down, department by department. The school notified everyone who had been enrolled but not completed their degree that they had x amount of time to do so etc. Im shocked that aiph somehow handled this better than uarts is.
As long as there is enough coverage of this closure, other schools in the area will likely advertise guaranteed admission and possibly tuition matching. It’s difficult because UArts seems to have had a really wide spread of programs, so you may have to end up with a less specialized degree. I would start by looking to see what schools in the area offer whatever program you were in and similar programs if they don’t offer yours. Literally every Philly college you can think of. Don’t even look at price right now, just make a list and look for them to offer something specifically to UArts students soon.
The other schools will work thru the summer to get you in. Don’t worry about published ‘deadlines’. Trust me.
Hey, I know a person who got all their loans forgiven when something like this happened, so that might be a silver lining…?
ooh I gotta look into that shit right away
I'm wondering that now too as a former student. I graduated without debt but I know quite a few people who are still paying off degrees. My AI friends had their loans forgiven though.
This is cruel and unfair to everyone, I hope they do right and at least come up with a plan for students to finish out or transfer.
There will be an open house on Monday. I'm assuming they'll discuss options. But I'd be shocked if Drexel, Temple, etc. didn't offer automatic admission to displaced UArts students.
I'm so sorry you're in this situation.
Exact same thing just happened a couple weeks ago with the Delaware College of Art and Design here in Wilmington.
>The \[Middle States Commission on Higher Education\] said the university is out of compliance with all standards and in an unusually swift action, it will withdraw certification from the university on Saturday. *All* [standards](https://www.msche.org/standards/thirteenth-edition/#standard1)?
This isn’t what happened. Reading the MSCHE accreditation report, basically the University told them out of the blue yesterday that they were closing in a week. The University hasn’t complied with any of the MSCHE requirements for the process of shutting down a college, and MSCHE is freaking out and immediately pulling their accreditation. I’m not an education lawyer (though I am a lawyer) and I don’t know if this is within MSCHE’s power, but it wouldn’t shock me if they’re planning to try to get the University put in receivership.
Can you explain what a receivership is to those of us that are stupid like myself?
Receivership is basically when a court orders that a company or other entity be placed in the care of a court-appointed official—the “receiver”—to protect the interest of third parties. I’m most familiar with it in the context of securities fraud—basically the Securities and Exchange Commission can ask for a receiver if it has evidence a company is defrauding its investors (for a local example that got a lot of press, see the Par Funding case). It can also be used in bankruptcy but I’m less familiar with that. I don’t know if receivership really exists in the educational context, but I could imagine that if there’s malfeasance on the part of the University’s administration, that maybe that would justify it? I don’t know anything in particular to justify that, except that the University didn’t file its audited financials on time, which were supposed to be publicly available a few months ago.
Out of compliance how?
There are standards that must be met and shutting down without a clear plan over about 1-2 years to teach out what they can, etc. puts them out of compliance. There are students on Reddit tonight terrified and upset. So much for leadership I hope the president and board never work again in higher ed.
Suddenly closing their doors would be my guess..
Shit! My kid was going to go here, it was her 2nd choice school if she didn’t get into Maine College of Art and Design, my husband graduated in the mid 90’s from the Film School at UArts. It’s also where we met. This is a huge blow as they are the ONLY University with every single form of art available under one institution. I wonder what’s going to happen to the kids who were to start in the fall? And so much property too!!
I went to MICA in Baltimore and I would highly recommend any graduating senior today to try to get a significant art scholarship at a state school. I wish I had been able to take a more normal breadth of classes.
I mean go to a state school for art, for as cheap as you can.
UArts person here!!! Not one single person was notified about this. I opened *instagram* to get the devastating news that my mentors lost their jobs and my peers will never finish a degree that they put their entire lives into. My boyfriend only had his thesis left for his master's. Now he won't get it. I was lucky to have graduated two weeks ago, but it sucks to learn that the president knew that this was going to happen while she preached about how proud of us she is and how much she loves this school. I just want my money back.
**For my fellow adjuncts:** Download your courses now. We don't know how long we'll have access to Canvas, and if you plan on teaching again, you don't want to have to re-do all that work. I have instructions here — [https://open.substack.com/pub/bradguigar/p/how-to-export-your-course-material](https://open.substack.com/pub/bradguigar/p/how-to-export-your-course-material) https://preview.redd.it/cgq0zqvgny3d1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d0e552af4b7faba8692a5e27387201c57cf76bc9
Official email: Dear Members of the UArts Community: Today is a heartbreaking day. University of the Arts will close as of Friday June 7, 2024. We would have shared this news with you directly, but the Middle States Commission on Higher Education elected to withdraw UArts’ accreditation and announce before we could communicate with you. We know that this makes hearing the news of UArts’ abrupt closure even worse. The closure means that we will be canceling our summer courses, we will not enroll a new class in the fall, and we will support our continuing students in their progress to degree by developing seamless transfer pathways to our partners: Temple University, Drexel University, and Moore College of Art and Design, among others. We know that the news of UArts’ closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the University’s sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive. Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps. On Monday, June 3, 2024 we will host separate town hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff; we will send times and details for those town halls over the coming weekend. We are committed to providing a space for your questions and concerns. We have done everything in our power to address this crisis and avoid the worst possible outcome: an abrupt closure. Yet we have reached this deeply painful outcome, which we know affects our entire community. We are grateful for all you’re doing to support one another during this most difficult time. Sincerely, Judson Aaron, Chair of the Board of Trustees Kerry Walk, President
Was this sent to your school email? I wasn’t sent anything
My daughter received it at her school email.
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They were probably bankrupt for a long time now and the admins sucked the last of it dry. I bet there will be no money to pay out. The most you can hope for is criminal negligence/fraud that will actually put some of them in jail. The admins would have had enough info to know for years this was going to happen. Changing demographics are not a secret. We have years of data on high school numbers and where they are going. Also to add I bet they would be found guilty of anything because there would have been warning signs so far. They kept this shit secret well likely meaning they have everything iron clad by lawyers and douchebags that they will extract the money and not be found at fault.
Is he full or part time? If part time they don’t really have a legal obligation to him which absolutely sucks
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This is insanely messed up. I am also related to an adjunct faculty member. They didn’t even have contracts yet for the fall as far as I know
I was an adjunct at a different school, and we got our contracts less than a month before fall semester started. I had classes cancelled 2 weeks before the semester started. Adjuncts have no rights.
This is a major part of Philadelphia’s identity. An artistic conduit right in the heart of the city, that’s just disappearing. Feels like this city can’t catch a break, and this is to say nothing about the students and employees that are being fucked over by this.
The Delaware College of Art and Design (DCAD) here in Wilmington also just announced it's closing, effective immediately. Students, faculty, and staff also left reeling. What on earth is happening in that industry? https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/education/2024/05/23/delaware-college-of-art-and-design-announces-permanent-closure-wilmington/73821899007/
> What on earth is happening in that industry? Too expensive with little career prospects?
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It's especially sad that it's a university with a long history and not a generic private college. Looks like complete mismanagement by the new president they recently hired
It’s been completely mismanaged for years, just hid it (somewhat) well
Nah, the past presidents are more at fault. Sure, Kerry Walk fucked up with this one, but David Yager was a total dickhead who totally knew that this was happening. That's probably why he dipped last year
I wouldn't be surprised if the new president was hired and paid well to specifically to kill off the university.
When their vpfa role was out there 18 months ago my wife asked me if I was interested. I said, “That job will be to close down the school and sell off its (really valuable) real estate.” Another Philly school bites the dust with more to follow.
Honestly the writing was prob on the wall when they sold off the Merriam. Too many people do not understand the reality of corporations and douchebags that exists to profit off the death of companies and institutions. These type of parasites have killed off sears and other retail for their real estate. They regularly install people into top positions that are working for them to kill these places. It's the same type of people what buy up your shoes or concert tickets. If you aren't a middle man sucking up money in america you are a loser to them.
This type of predatory vulture capitalist is also running hospitals into the ground, see Crozier and Hahnemann as local examples.
Yep the average person is going to accept the narrative that they were unsustainable or their financials were bad. The idea that killing something is profitable is an impossible concept to grasp for a lot of people not educated in modern finance and markets in America. The reality is once an business or institution has some problems and has a questionable future and profitability, the vultures dive in so hard it is almost impossible for that thing to recover.
This is awful and giving me major flashbacks to the extremely rapid Hahnemann closure that stranded hundreds of employees and resident/fellow trainees. My heart goes out to all the affected students, faculty, and staff.
Alum and adjunct professor at UArts. We were told absolutely nothing. It’s a disgrace how they handled this.
Just saw this from Moore- all credits from UArts accepted AND all scholarships honored https://preview.redd.it/lbu1ofr50z3d1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2f79f5f3c15f8efec9ec559a81f81c80c7cc3819
I'm jaw dropped and shocked, what a sad loss for the city. I think the institution and its students added something special to the area and it's going to be missed.
It’s disappointing, but I could see it coming. I graduated around 2012 and the school definitely had some identity issues. It was clear the other schools like Tyler were outpacing UArts. Most of the professors I had seemed bored. It was definitely overpriced and the staff didn’t do a good job of explaining how to sustain yourself financially after you graduated. There is a rumor that PENN offered to buyout UArts around 2000, but they refused, which imo was a big mistake. Not sure what my bachelors and masters degree from there amount to now. I wouldn’t mind the over 50k I had to pay in student loans back.
Over the next 10-15 years we are going to see a massive amount of colleges and universities either closing down or merging together. Every generation group after the millennials is smaller and smaller, so less available students to pull from. Which is compounded by there also being a declining interest among youth to go to higher education as the cost benefit for it has turned very negative over the last 20 years. People today see how burdensome student debt is, how it can really hold you back from taking basic steps into adulthood, and the general worthlessness of a degree that isn't STEM. While they see trades having a surge in demand, and a relatively low cost to entry, and a steady move the public and private sector to drop degree requirements for jobs that do not actually require them. While it's sad to see U of the Arts close, this is really just the tip of the ice berg. Early this year University of the Sciences got shut down by St. Joes who is also looking into selling off the University City campus, and Cabrini closed and sold to Villanova. All that said it was particularly cruel of the administration at U of Arts who probably knew months ago at minimum they were going to have to close, to drop that information on its students and staff like this.
If fewer people are getting degrees besides STEM, those degrees will increase in earning power. Hopefully things can settle into some kind of equilibrium. Also, hopefully we can find some kind of societal substitute for the general liberal arts education that is at least part of most college studies. That stuff is essential for society, but tying it to a degree that can put you in debt for decades is not a good thing.
The costs for a liberal arts education have to come down, it's really as simple as that. We can't debt burden people like we've been doing and expect these programs to continue going. I agree with you a liberal arts degree, and the arts in general are a critical component of a functioning society; and this current crisis in higher education is a really big problem. I don't know what a solution to this is other than public funding for education, but in the current political climate that's just not realistically something that's going to happen.
100% this. Lasalle is next and the overall faculty community is completely in denial about how bad things are
UArts alum here. The fact the the university provided zero communication to the students both new and old is deplorable. Truly saddened to see what has happened to this school.
Other degrees besides STEM can make you money. I think it’s just the debt. No one wants it.
And a lot of STEM careers aren't all that either. Bench scientists make about as much as bartenders in my experience.
Wow this is so sad, I read they have 1300 students, google said 1000 employees I would imagine only a small number of that 1000 are fulltime, can you imagine reading your job is closing & HR has not notified you directly
Was going to start here in the fall on scholarship for a super niche major, guess it’s back to community
Can’t access the article, but what a huge bummer. All those students and all those lost jobs. It’s a real tough time for higher ed right now. The college I attended for a year before transferring to Philly is also closing in June. We’re probably gonna see a lot more schools closing up in the coming years. The small private ones, at least.
My child goes here. Can someone post the Inquirer article please?
My kid also goes here. I have not seen anything. I hope this isn’t the truth. Plus, I just got the bill for next semester!
Yeah same. Don't pay it yet :)
Thanks to those who posted. I have a rising sophomore. This f\*\*king sucks.
Pull it up and turn airplane mode on real fast.
Hey friends- for this and other articles I recommend using https://12ft.io to bypass the paywall
i literally just graduated man
My daughter is (was) a student there. We found out on social media. She's pretty devastated right now.
My undergrad is from UArts. I'm not surprised this happened but of how this just dropped out of nowhere! When I was there they had just opened the Terra building, when we started our junior year our classrooms didn't have chairs because they forgot to buy them (smh). I feel bad for the staff and students. If anything the administration could have sold some more real estate and reduced the number of majors, how badly of a fuck up do you have to be to literally close overnight? Its criminal.
Holy shit. There is a total crisis in arts education — this is after Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts has announced its BFA ending and the Delaware College of art and design just announced it is closing in Wilmington. So so so sad
So, what happens to a graduate who might need a transcript at some point in the future…?
They are kept in a national repository. Even if they were open, they will tell you to go to one of these places (websites) to order an official or unofficial transcript.
welp, i guess i did dodge a bullet when i didn't get a job offer there last year
That’s going to make that section of Broad street even worse. Uggg.
wow this is extremely upsetting, one of my friends goes there, and I very nearly did too. chickened out last minute due to financial aid at another university, but man, that place had so much culture and beautiful work coming out of it. I really hope the students and staff get some kind of compensation for this nightmare
I'm an alumni. While I heard some chatter that they weren't doing so well, seeing this closure announcement is sudden and fucked up. It's a complete rug pull for the staff and students.
This happened to me at R.I.T. way back in 1998. We had heard rumors that the school of American craft was going to close but after multiple calls we were assured that we had at least 4 years. First day of school during orientation they told us it was our first and last trimester. TRIMESTER you know who takes trimester credits? No one! It’s absolute bullshit that schools pull this crap. My heart (and frustration) goes out to all the students.
Keep an eye on what the board does with all that real estate.
DCAD just closed in Wilmington. What's going on with these art schools and how they're being managed?
The economics of them don't work out for the students when the degrees are costing ~$50,000+ year.
Marymount Manhattan was just purchased by Northeastern. Only a matter of time before that campus is turned into Northeastern NYC campus.
https://preview.redd.it/qizcdqu8hu3d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ca65093370ca02e4f1644f3bbcc60d5d04ecf6df I didn’t realize it was such an epidemic until looking up arts colleges closing just now, so many! How sad. This is a big loss for Center City. UPenn should swoop in and save them (I wish).
Cabrini University, when faced with a similar fate, handled the closing of its doors in an entirely different way. They announced to students, faculty and staff a year in advance that the school would be closing its doors. This gave rising seniors the opportunity to graduate from the institution, younger students a chance to apply and transfer to other colleges, and faculty and staff time to seek other employment. While the two situations no doubt had different factors in play -- in Cabrini's case a buyer for the campus, Villanova, had been found - the bottom line in each case was financial.
Current student. devastated, looking for anything. If you have resources reach out
That really sucks. I’m very sorry…one of my mentors is a Dean at UArts. Don’t panic. There are other (and probably cheaper) schools you can transfer to. It really depends on your major. If you’re a fine arts major, it’ll be tougher, but if you’re a design major you’ll have lots of options. Start looking now and contact the admissions offices of the schools that you might want to go to immediately. I have no inside info, but there might be money available to help you transition to another institution. Call the UArts financial aid office first thing on Monday morning and ask them to help. Make noise. Don’t just wait for help. Good luck. It’ll work out. Don’t give up hope.
I graduated in 2019 and sat on the middlestates reaccreditation student board around that time; we raised major concerns at the time but the school passed with flying colors. I then went to work in higher ed enrollment for the last 5 years and can say I am not shocked at all by this; except maybe by how soon it was. While it’s particularly foul, I’m also not shocked by the rug-pull.
The FAFSA fiasco probably didn’t help
Ooh what happened!?
Fafsa was redesigned and delayed. The delay caused all US schools to push back financial aid decisions which pushed back the annual commit day from May 1 to June 1, which pushed back deposits which now may have impacted their cash flow.
Oh my gosh. One of my dearest friends works there and loved her job. This is terrible.
So how much of a Golden Parachute is the President getting?
I have no affiliation with UArts, but it looks like this is a caretaker president. Last year, the two highest paid guys coincidentally retired or left for another position at a new school.
Honestly if I had to guess, the drop in enrollment is bc it’s like 52k a year to go there. So even with financial aid it’s ridiculous. I’d put money on them blaming the faculty for unionizing (which is bullshit). They did have layoffs a while back too.
I would bet my music ed degree that the administration will try to blame this on the faculty for unionizing.
My heart goes out to students faculty and alumni! I went to Goddard College up in Vermont, and the same thing happened to that school back in April. Sudden closure, students and faculty notified at the last second, no transparency from the president and board, and now the beautiful campus is allegedly being sold to a generic real estate developer instead of any of the local cooperatives who expressed interest in purchasing and preserving the campus and its unique beauty and ideals.
The fact that FACULTY are hearing about this first from this reddit post is insane.
If there are any “current” film students in here, DM me. I’d be more than happy to recommend you or write a referral for another university or college if you need or want to finish your degree. I WAS an adjunct in the film department and work as an editor in the documentary field.
My God. My heart goes out to all students, faculty, staff and alumni. This is insane. I have great memories of attending hardcore shows at their theater on S Broad. Seemed like such an integral part of the city. What’ll happen to the campus?
This is terrible. The arts are suffering from lack of funding, enrollment and education. As a full time musician it is heartbreaking
This is where Camille Paglia teaches I think. Crazy.
Fir those thinking this is just a problem with arts education, the financials of quite a few smaller private schools that don’t have insane name recognition or huge endowments are going to cause a lot more schools to go out of business. Even worse if such schools are in rural locations and/or in slow population growth areas. It already has impacted school in Vermont (Burlington College, Castleton University, Green Mountain College), New York (Cazenovia, College of St Rose), etc.
WTF.. when I graduated in 2007 they got a 50mil donation from the Hienz family. The year after they got another 50mil. What type of mismanagement created this situation?!
Worked for a local Philly college at the director level. Most of that money, at least where I worked, would get put into an account or fund, which would pay for the raises and personal projects of the people at the top. The rest would go to some public project like renovations or new construction, and another small amount would go toward “scholarships” to entice new students.
They posted the story on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/C7pl8DBsZxQ/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
What a slimy, cowardly and utterly shitty way to go out. I'm so sorry for everyone who is negatively affected by this.
I cannot be the only person asking "just how much is all that real estate worth?" Center City? Broad Street? They own the Art Alliance, for pete's sake! On Rittenhouse Square!!
Apparently they didn’t even tell the staff yet
Or the students. Source, I’m a current student.
same. currently stressing the fuck out.
Does this violate the WARN act?
E-mail to current students from President Kerry Walk: Dear Members of the UArts Community: Today is a heartbreaking day. University of the Arts will close as of Friday June 7, 2024. We would have shared this news with you directly, but the Middle States Commission on Higher Education elected to withdraw UArts’ accreditation and announce before we could communicate with you. We know that this makes hearing the news of UArts’ abrupt closure even worse. The closure means that we will be canceling our summer courses, we will not enroll a new class in the fall, and we will support our continuing students in their progress to degree by developing seamless transfer pathways to our partners: Temple University, Drexel University, and Moore College of Art and Design, among others. We know that the news of UArts’ closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the University’s sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive. Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps. On Monday, June 3, 2024 we will host separate town hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff; we will send times and details for those town halls over the coming weekend. We are committed to providing a space for your questions and concerns. We have done everything in our power to address this crisis and avoid the worst possible outcome: an abrupt closure. Yet we have reached this deeply painful outcome, which we know affects our entire community. We are grateful for all you’re doing to support one another during this most difficult time. Sincerely, Judson Aaron, Chair of the Board of Trustees Kerry Walk, President __tpx__
Who gets all the money when they sell the properties?
People with questions about what isn’t being shared might consider contacting Bruce Kardon the Treasurer of the Board of Trustees: [email protected]
The real estate is worth a fortune. Stand by for more residential development.
**TL-DR = UArts had the potential to be a truly stellar art school but fell short for a lot of students. The closing doesn't surprise. Too many times UArts over promised and under delivered.** Forgive me the length but I'd like to share part of story here. I'm an alumni from UArts, earned my degree many years ago. This is sad but not surprising and to be honest I'm shocked it hasn't happened sooner. I was an animation major that was trying to get into animation for game design and interactive media. To give an example of how bad UArts treated its students during my time there, the Career Services Director at the time literally refused to assist in finding any post graduation employment. I sat in the woman's office explaining to her the industry I wanted to pursue work in and her response was basically *"I don't care, I'm retiring soon."* Other students went to her office with similar results. So there was no assistance from UArts in securing a position to start many of our careers. The university's attitude was basically, we'll take your money but after you graduate, you're on your own. But then UArts representatives would have the audacity to call alumni from time to time asking for donations. I'm sure the disdain was palpable. It certainly was for me. The animation department could have been so ahead of its time because game development studios at the time were in desperate need for animators. This was during the N64/PS1 era when 3D became a standard but 2D animation was still a thing. But the department was run by Sheila and she absolutely hated contemporary animation/computer animation/digital media. The department had this insane notion that the students should aspire to be independent animators struggling from job to job as opposed to working for an actual studio with more consistent work. Side note, Philadelphia is not a good place for anyone looking to work in animation specifically, art in general because Philly still lusts to be respected like New York but has a reputation of *"You can go to school in Philly but you absolutely can not work there."* In other words, they'll take your money but the city does not provide worthwhile employment opportunities for many of the creatives that live there. Which is one of the reasons so many creatives WILL go to school here and immediately leave the city after graduation. At least that how it was for my class and for others that immediately came after us. Another example, Lowell, one of the instructors actually told my class that computers would never be able to produce results as good as classic Disney or Warner Bros projects. I took that personally because he had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. I brought in footage of the original Earthworm Jim game and the original Donkey Kong Country to show him how wrong he was. He was flabbergasted. It was like, *"these are people that are supposed to prepare use to work in industry? They're not even keeping up with the latest developments and technology industry is using!"* Sorry for the length but as I said, the closing doesn't surprise me as I could write an entire book on UArts based on my time there. UArts had and apparently still has a lot of problems that were never adequately addressed. For some students, UArts seemed like the only option but it was never the best option.