CIA Spring>Summer program helps student quickly transfer, stay on schedule

Savion Holman realized during fall semester that his first choice for college wasn't the best choice for him. By spring semester, he’d quickly enrolled at the Cleveland Institute of Art, where the Spring>Summer program helped him stay on schedule.

Holman grew up in Cleveland's Union-Miles neighborhood and attended St. Edward High School in Lakewood, just west of Cleveland. After graduating, he went to Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan—two-and-a-half-hour drive from home—to study graphic design.

After just one semester, though, he knew: "That wasn't for me."

"I just didn't like the environment," he says. "That was my first time away from home, too. So, that could've been part of it. I was really homesick."

Holman returned to Cleveland for winter break, during which time a friend of Holman's family who worked at CIA introduced him to the College. A fan of the Spider-Verse franchise and protagonist Miles Morales, Holman was immediately impressed by CIA's Animation program.

"When I did more research on CIA, I saw the school has a pretty close relationship with Disney for animators. I was, like, 'Oh, that's pretty cool.'"

Within a few short weeks—by the start of spring semester—Holman had transferred to CIA. But, not all of his credits transferred from Eastern Michigan.

To help ensure he could still graduate in four years, Holman participated in CIA's Spring>Summer program, which allows students to start classes in January (spring semester) and take a condensed nine-week term from May to July (summer semester) to get on track to start their sophomore year in August (fall semester).  

"I'm caught up with my credits that didn't transfer from Eastern Michigan from that first semester, so [the Spring>Summer program] kept me on track," he says. "And the sooner I can graduate, the better for me."

What did he like most about the Spring>Summer program? For starters, he enjoyed that so many classes were held outside during the summer to take advantage of Cleveland's weather. But he also valued the close relationships he developed with his professors.

"Because there weren't a lot of us, we got to connect with our professors a lot more," he says. "You just get a close relationship, and you learn a lot more because there aren't as many students in one class."

Holman is now a sophomore majoring in Photography. He's still interested in films and storytelling but shifted away from Animation because he wants to "get behind a camera." His experience in the Spring>Summer program helped him get there, and he believes it could also help other transfer students who are considering CIA.

"Going into it, it was kind of weird because it's like, 'Dang, I kind of have to give up my summer,'" Holman says. "But honestly, it's not that bad.

"All the classes are pretty early, and you get out a little bit after noon," he continues. "And the classes are fast-paced, but that's to your benefit because the summer semester is shorter than other semesters during the school year. The fast pace? It works."

Interested in learning whether CIA's Spring>Summer program can help you? Visit cia.edu/spring-summer or contact the Office of Admissions at admissions@cia.edu or 216.421.7418.