January 10, 2024
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is closing its college degree programs due to rising costs and declining enrollment, President Eric Pryor says. The picture above of the Philadelphia arts school and museum was taken in 2015.
The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts is pulling the plug on its bachelor's and master's degree programs, though it will continue offering its certificate programs, school officials said Wednesday.
The decision to end its college programs – unanimously approved Tuesday by PAFA's board of trustees – will not impact the Center City institution's museum, which was established in 1805, or the its commitment to K-12 arts programs, officials said.
In a public letter, President Eric Pryor said the decision was prompted by the "rising costs, expanding requirements and dwindling enrollment."
'"Despite our best efforts to address these challenges, we have determined that the only path forward is to wind down our BFA and MFA programs at the end of the 2024-2025 academic year," Pryor wrote.
The school set up a website, PAFAForward, that details the future of the institution and how the changes will impact current students. It notes that PAFA couldn't continue operating with less than 300 students, but it currently enrolls only about half of that number. According to U.S. News & World Report, the school had 121 graduates in 2022.
Students on track to graduate by the end of the 2024-25 academic year will be able to complete their degrees. PAFA officials said the school intends to maintain about 85% of its faculty through the 2024-25 academic calendar to ensure these students graduate.
For PAFA's 37 first-year and sophomore students, classes will conclude at the end of the 2024 spring semester. The school is facilitating transfers to art schools in the Philadelphia region – the University of the Arts, Temple University's Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Moore College of Art & Design, Arcadia University and Pennsylvania College of Art and Design.
Application fees will be waived and PAFA will release the students from their housing contracts. Scholarships offered by PAFA will not be applied to other schools.
"This is a difficult day for our students, faculty and staff," Pryor said in a press release. "We left no stone unturned in our efforts to find a different outcome. Key considerations were whether PAFA could continue to offer the high-quality student life experience our students expect and deserve, and whether it was financially sustainable to do so. After deep reflection, the answer to both questions was no.”
Going forward, PAFA will focus on the museum, expanding its other educational programs and creating an "arts ecosystem," officials said.
"In many ways, the decision to end these degree-granting programs presents PAFA with an opportunity to return to our roots—arts education for the lifecycle of the artist," Pryor wrote in his letter. "PAFA, at its heart, is a community of artists and art-lovers, and we will not waiver from our commitment to American Art, its creation, appreciation and stewardship."
