Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 8, 2022

CLEVELAND—The Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA) and Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) inked a five-year articulation agreement that provides students who wish to pursue creative careers a seamless pathway to a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

Through this new partnership, Tri-C students who complete a specified curriculum and are admitted to CIA will transfer with 30 semester units of transferable credit. Students would enter CIA as sophomores and directly begin their degree program in one of CIA’s 13 majors in visual arts, craft, integrated media and design.

“Students now have a clear course of action to focus their work at Tri-C and optimize their time and tuition dollars with the assurance that they are taking the right classes and acquiring the right skills to transfer to CIA, a premier college of art and design,” says Yvette Sobky Shaffer, CIA’s Vice President of Enrollment Management + Marketing. “It also sends a clear message to students that we welcome them to our community and have a deeper understanding of their experience.”

“Tri-C has an amazing art and design faculty and studios on four campuses throughout Cuyahoga County,” says Paul Cox, Dean of Creative Arts at Cuyahoga Community College. “We are accessible to a broad range of students throughout the region and offer a substantial range of services and support as well. We are thrilled to partner with CIA on this agreement that provides a pathway for students seeking to advance their artistic goals and dreams.”

Students who successfully complete the program and are admitted to CIA will receive a guaranteed $10,000 per year scholarship for their remaining three years of study at CIA. In addition, when space is available, CIA will offer dual enrollment in one Art History course to allow Tri-C students on this path to study on CIA’s campus and complete an additional three semester units toward their degree.

“We’re very excited to partner with Tri-C,” Sobky Shaffer says. “Creating additional pathways for students at different stages of their academic journey is important for the Cleveland Institute of Art. We are a welcoming space for all types and ages of students, and this agreement represents our commitment to serving transfer and nontraditional students. Not everyone knows that art and design are the right next step or are ready for the level of rigor at CIA right out of high school. Transfer students have a different level of maturity and are invaluable to the classroom experience.

“This initiative also serves our social justice mission at CIA,” Sobky Shaffer adds. “It creates an affordable, clear path for local students who may not have known about CIA or that opportunities here are available to them. This is an incredibly welcoming and diverse community, and we know this agreement will go a long way toward letting potential students know they belong here.”

Prior to COVID-19, Ohio’s creative industries supported nearly 290,000 jobs, contributed more than $41 billion to the state’s economy, and generated more than $4.6 billion in annual tax revenues (federal, state, and local combined), according to the Ohio Arts Council. CIA and Tri-C's articulation agreement is poised to help increase the number of creative-economy employees and four-year graduates in Northeast Ohio, thus bolstering the local economy.

“Four-year college completion is an important benchmark for students, especially those who borrow to invest in their education. There is a significant increase in earning power for a student who completes a BFA,” Sobky Shaffer says. “We want to see more of our local students pursuing creative careers, contributing to the local economy, and ultimately earning higher incomes.”

This articulation agreement was finalized on February 10. It involved more than two years of planning and went into effect immediately. It marks the first articulation agreement with a community college in CIA’s 140-year history. Students and families interested in learning more can visit cia.edu/tri-c.

CONTACT
Cleveland Institute of Art
Michael C. Butz, Director of College Communications + External Relations
mcbutz@cia.edu / 216.421.7404