Type |
Private art school Non-profit |
---|---|
Established | 1866 |
Chancellor | Walter E. Massey |
President | Elissa Tenny |
Academic staff
|
141 full-time 427 part-time |
Undergraduates | 2,842 (Fall 2015) |
Postgraduates | 748 (Fall 2015) |
Location |
Chicago, IL, USA 41°52′46″N 87°37′26″W / 41.87944°N 87.62389°WCoordinates: 41°52′46″N 87°37′26″W / 41.87944°N 87.62389°W |
Campus | Urban |
Affiliations |
Art Institute of Chicago AICAD NASAD |
Website | www |
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design. It is located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. The school is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either entity. Providing degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels, SAIC has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top two graduate art programs in the nation, as well as by Columbia University's National Arts Journalism survey as the most influential art school in the United States.
Tracing its history to an art students cooperative founded in 1866, which grew into the museum and school, SAIC has been accredited since 1936 by the Higher Learning Commission, by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design since 1944 (charter member), and by the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design (AICAD) since its founding in 1991. Additionally it is accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board.
Its downtown Chicago campus consists of seven buildings located in the immediate vicinity of the AIC building. SAIC is in an equal partnership with the AIC and share many administrative resources such as design, construction, and human resources. The campus, located in the Loop, comprises chiefly three buildings: the Michigan (112 S. Michigan Ave.), the Sharp (37 S. Wabash Ave.), and the Columbus (280 S. Columbus Dr.). SAIC also owns additional buildings throughout Chicago that are used as student galleries or investments.
The institute has its roots in the 1866 founding of the Chicago Academy of Design, which local artists established in rented rooms on Clark Street. It was financed by member dues and patron donations. Four years later, the school moved into its own Adams Street building, which was destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.