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Philadelphia’s historic University of the Arts will on Friday shut down indefinitely following declining enrollment, budget shortfalls and the recent loss of its accreditation.
The campus, founded in the 1870s in the city’s central business district, is the longtime home of feminist cultural critic Camille Paglia and one of the oldest arts and music colleges in the country.
Notable alumni include Hollywood filmmaker Joe Dante, the director of “Gremlins.”
In a statement on Wednesday, the university officials said the board of trustees approved the closure Saturday after learning the school would lose its accreditation.
Accreditation certifies that a college meets academic standards recognized by the Education Department.
The President and Board Chairman, Judson Aaron said, “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.”
The statement said officials would help returning students transfer to Temple University, Drexel University, Moore College of Art and Design and other institutions.
According to the UArts website, the private university had 1,300 students and 77 full-time faculty members in 2022. Programs include music, theater and art.
The news comes as high inflation, falling application numbers and the end of pandemic stimulus funding have sparked a surge in closures among private liberal arts institutions the past year.
In Philadelphia on Monday, some UArts students protested the closure, prompting administrators to cancel a 4 p.m. question-and-answer session.
“As the situation continues to unfold rapidly, we cannot adequately answer your questions today,” the university said in a statement released minutes before the session.
On Tuesday, the UArts website directed students, faculty, alumni and others to submit their questions through a web form.
The Middle States Commission on Higher Education said that it withdrew the university’s accreditation on Saturday because administrators failed to give adequate notice of the closure or provide a plan for students.
