Colleges+of+art+may+combine

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution July 27, 2005 Wednesday Home Edition SECTION: Metro News; Pg. 1D;

LENGTH: 662 words

HEADLINE: Colleges of art may combine

BYLINE: ANDREA JONES, CATHERINE FOX

BODY: The 100-year-old Atlanta College of Art is considering a plan to fold into its new neighbor, the Savannah College of Art and Design, as early as next summer, college officials said Tuesday.

Under the deal, the Atlanta College of Art, which has a 121,000-square-foot campus in Midtown, would no longer be a part of the larger Woodruff Arts Center. The Woodruff Arts Center now comprises the college, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the High Museum of Art, the Alliance Theatre and the Young Audiences of Atlanta.

The Atlanta College of Arts' board of directors voted Monday to approve the plan, which in the next several weeks will go before the boards of trustees of both the Woodruff Arts Center and the Savannah College of Art and Design.

The Savannah college opened an Atlanta campus in March, in a high-tech office building on Peachtree Street, just blocks away from the Atlanta College of Art and the High Museum. SCAD also turned a nearby hotel on Spring Street into a dormitory for students and staff.

SCAD, which started in 1978, now has more than 7,000 students enrolled in classes at its flagship Savannah campus. About 150 students have signed up for fall classes at the Atlanta location, and the school projects that 600 students will be enrolled there by 2008.

About 350 students attend the Atlanta College of Art, which calls itself the oldest private college of art and design in the Southeast. Founded in 1905, the college opened a $13 million residence hall and sculpture studio in 2003. It has 25 full-time faculty members and 50 part-time instructors.

The two schools have been in discussions over the past year and have been "exploring a broad spectrum of ways" to "collaborate to advance arts education," John Speigel, chairman of the board of ACA, said in a statement. The colleges offer similar academic programs in a range of majors with concentrations in fine arts.

But news of the plan came as a shock to professors and students at the small school, which celebrated its centennial anniversary this spring.

Larry Jens Anderson, who has been with ACA for 23 years, said faculty members are "freaked out."

"This has all happened under the radar," said Anderson, an Atlanta-area artist. "We are getting kicked out, sold off."

Kathleen Smith, vice president of communications at the Woodruff Arts Center, said it's too early to discuss detailed aspects of the alliance, including the financial details. "There is still a lot to work out," she said.

Smith said current ACA students would not see a tuition increase and could continue their programs of study. If the plan is approved, those students will convert from their current semester system to the quarter system in summer 2006 and would then have the opportunity to transfer to a SCAD degree program, she said.

SCAD offers bachelor of fine arts, master of architecture, master of arts and master of fine arts degrees.

Pam Rhame, SCAD's senior vice president for recruitment and communications, said SCAD offers more opportunities for students, including master's degrees and study abroad programs. "It's a wonderful combining of resources," she said.

Courtnay Papy, 20, a rising ACA junior from Savannah, said she worries that students' degrees will have less value because SCAD, unlike ACA, is not accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design.

"I think what just happened is more like a business proposition, not so much an art school approaching an art school. But it's not just business," Papy said. "This is about 365 student degrees in jeopardy."

Annette Cone-Skelton, founding director of the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia and an ACA alumna, said she thinks the alliance "could be a good thing."

"The fact that there will be more students in the city will bring a higher visibility to contemporary visual art," Cone-Skelton said. "The alliance will provide a broader menu of courses for both sets of students."

GRAPHIC: BECKY STEIN / Special Professor Martin Emanuel (from left) of the Atlanta College of Art gave a woodwork lesson in September to sculpture majors Kristin, Karen and Kim Seiger, triplets from Jacksonville.

LOAD-DATE: July 27, 2005