Woodbury University
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Woodbury University is a
private university Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public student loans, and grant (money ...
in
Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...
, with a satellite campus in
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
.


History

The school was founded in 1884 as Woodbury's Business College by its namesake, F. C. Woodbury, formerly a partner in Heald's Business College in
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
, thus making it the second oldest institution of higher learning in Los Angeles and one of the oldest business schools west of Chicago. That historic link between Woodbury and the world of business has been maintained throughout the years. Woodbury was coeducational from its founding, making it one of the earliest colleges West of the Mississippi to admit women. The original mission of Woodbury University was to educate Los Angeles residents in the practical areas of business: bookkeeping, commercial law, and telegraphy. For a time, Woodbury could boast that 10% of Los Angeles' citizenry were attending the institution and its earliest alumni lists form a who's who of 19th century Los Angeles. In 1931, the division of professional arts was established to focus on fields of design that are most closely allied to business: commercial art, interior design, and fashion design. Woodbury then became a college of business administration and design. In 1969, Woodbury introduced a graduate program leading to the Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree. In 1974, Woodbury College became Woodbury University. In 1982, Computer Information Systems was added as a major, followed in 1984 by Architecture. In 1987, the Weekend College program for working adults was established with the aid of grants from The Fletcher Jones Foundation and The William Randolph Hearst Foundation. In 1994 the university formally organized its undergraduate and graduate programs into three schools: the School of Architecture and Design, the School of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Business and Management. That year three majors in the School of Arts and Sciences came into being: Psychology, Politics & History and Liberal Arts & Business. Additional undergraduate degree programs have been added in the areas of Marketing, Animation Arts, Communication, and Leadership.


Los Angeles campuses

For the first 103 years, the university followed the growth of the business community based in
Central Los Angeles __NOTOC__ Central Los Angeles is the historic urban region of the City of Los Angeles, California. Geography The City of Los Angeles The Los Angeles Department of City Planning divides the city into Area Planning Commission (APC) areas, each fur ...
. The school was originally located at 226 South Spring Street in
Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...
. By 1937, it moved to new facilities at 1027
Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard is a prominent boulevard in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, extending from Ocean Avenue in the city of Santa Monica east to Grand Avenue in the Financial District of downtown Los Angeles. One of the principal ...
in the Westlake district, just west of downtown. For 50 years this building served the university's classrooms and administrative needs. In 1985, the university acquired a suburban campus in
Shadow Hills, Los Angeles Shadow Hills (originally Hansen Heights) is a neighborhood in the Verdugo Mountains and northeastern San Fernando Valley, within the city of Los Angeles, California. Geography Shadow Hills is in the northwestern Verdugo Mountains, near the western ...
. This location was the site of the former
Villa Cabrini Academy Villa Cabrini Academy was a private Catholic elementary and high school for girls that operated from 1937 to 1970, under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The academy was located in Burbank, California, and served t ...
, a high school for girls run by the
Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus The Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is a Roman Catholic female religious congregation, founded in 1880 by Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini. Their aim is to spread devotion to the Sacred Heart by means of spiritual and corporal works ...
, founded by
Frances Xavier Cabrini Frances Xavier Cabrini ( it, Francesca Saverio Cabrini; July 15, 1850 – December 22, 1917), also called Mother Cabrini, was an Italian-American Catholic religious sister. She founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a ...
. In 1987, the university officially moved into this new campus. Since it is located within the Burbank post office area, it became known as their "Burbank" campus and it has a Burbank GPS address. Since 2005, the Los Angeles campus has been home to the
Julius Shulman Institute The Julius Shulman Institute (JSI) at Woodbury University promotes photography of the built environment. The JSI hosts exhibitions, workshops and symposia. History In 2005, architectural photographer Julius Shulman founded the Institute at Woodbury ...
.


Woodbury University San Diego

In 1998 the institution opened a satellite campus in Downtown
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
, Woodbury University San Diego, where it offers Bachelor of Architecture, Master of Architecture, and Master of Interior Architecture degrees. In Fall of 2008, It moved from
Downtown San Diego Downtown San Diego is the city center of San Diego, California, the eighth largest city in the United States. In 2010, the Centre City area had a population of more than 28,000. Downtown San Diego serves as the cultural and financial center and ...
to the
Barrio Logan Barrio Logan is a neighborhood in south central San Diego, California. It is bordered by the neighborhoods of East Village and Logan Heights to the north, Shelltown and Southcrest to the east, San Diego Bay to the southwest, and National Cit ...
neighborhood . The new location's building features a computer laboratory, studios, classrooms, and a library. On November 2, 2021 it was announced that the San Diego satellite campus will be permanently closed by 2024, with all operations being moved to the main university campus located in Burbank, California.


Gallery

The university has a gallery in
Hollywood, CA Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...
known as
WUHO WUHO-LD is a low-power television station A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio wa ...
which houses experimental exhibitions and multi-disciplinary collaborations.


Academics

Currently Woodbury University comprises three schools and one college offering graduate and undergraduate programs: The School of Business, School of Architecture, School of Media, Culture & Design, and the College of Liberal Arts. Woodbury undergraduate programs admit students on a rolling basis and the acceptance rate for all undergraduate majors is 56.6%.


Accreditation

Woodbury University is accredited by the Senior Commission of the
Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was an organization providing School accreditation, accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary school, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, ...
(WASC) and is approved by the Postsecondary Commission,
California Department of Education The California Department of Education is an agency within the Government of California that oversees public education. The department oversees funding and testing, and holds local educational agencies accountable for student achievement. Its st ...
. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges granted Woodbury its original regional accreditation in 1961. In 1994 the Architecture program was accredited by the
National Architectural Accrediting Board The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), established in 1940, is the oldest accrediting agency for architectural education in the United States. The NAAB accredits professional degrees in architecture offered by institutions with U.S. r ...
(NAAB). In 1991, the Interior Architecture Program was accredited by the
Council for Interior Design Accreditation A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...
. In 2008, the school received accreditation from the
National Association of Schools of Art and Design The National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD), founded in 1944, is an accrediting organization of colleges, schools and universities in the United States. The organization establishes standards for graduate and undergraduate degrees ...
(NASAD). Woodbury is accredited by the
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, also known as AACSB International, is an American professional organization. It was founded as the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business in 1916 to provide accreditation to ...
(AACSB). The School of Business received its accreditation from the
Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), formerly the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs, is a U.S. organization offering accreditation services to business programs focused on teaching and learni ...
(ACBSP) Spring 1998.


Rankings

Woodbury was ranked 34 overall (and eighth among California institutions) in ''The Economist's'' first-ever college rankings published in October 2015. It was also ranked 10th among the 161 ranked colleges and universities in California in the 2017 ''New York Times'' "Overall mobility index". The university ranked first among western regional universities in the percentage of international students (24%) in the 2018 U.S. News & World Report College Rankings. In 2014, ''
Money Magazine ''Money'' is an American personal finance brand and website owned by Ad Practitioners LLC and formerly also a monthly magazine, first published by Time Inc. (1972–2018) and later by Meredith Corporation (2018–2019). Its articles cover the g ...
'' ranked Woodbury University 15th nationally out of the top 25 "Colleges That Add the Most Value".


Student housing

Woodbury's Burbank campus has two residence halls with space for approximately 225 residents. South Hall, which is a small building composed mostly of single rooms, was built in the 1960s and houses up to 67 residents. South Hall is one of the original buildings acquired with the Burbank campus and was used as a dormitory for the Villa Cabrini Academy. North Hall, the larger of the two residence halls, opened in 1990 and houses up to 158 residents.


Annual Fashion Show and Gala

Since 1964, the university's fashion design students have presented their showcase work at the university's annual Fashion Show held at the historic Millennium Biltmore in Downtown Los Angeles. The show also features a Lifetime Achievement Award to a prestigious designer. In 2019, the award was given to Badgley Mischka.


Notable alumni

*
Helen Gurley Brown Helen Gurley Brown ( Helen Marie Gurley; February 18, 1922 – August 13, 2012) was an American author, publisher, and businesswoman. She was the editor-in-chief of ''Cosmopolitan'' magazine for 32 years. Garner 2009. Early life Helen Mar ...
– Author, publisher, businesswoman, and editor-in-chief of ''
Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...
'' magazine for 32 years. * Cleo Baldon – Landscape architect * Don Adolfo Camarillo – Land owner, horse breeder *
Richard Denning Richard Denning (March 27, 1914 – October 11, 1998) was an American actor who starred in science fiction films of the 1950s, including ''Unknown Island'' (1948), ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' (1954), '' Target Earth'' (1954), ''Day the ...
– Actor * Brittany Diego – Fashion stylist and founder of Fashion Mentor *
Percy V. Hammon Percy Vernon Hammon (August 28, 1873 – October 4, 1958) was a politician who served in the California State Assembly from 1907 to 1913 and in the Los Angeles City Council for the 2nd Ward from 1904 to 1906. He also served as a Deputy City Attorn ...
– Republican politician and member of the
Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the legislative body of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles in California. The council is composed of 15 members elected from single-member districts for four-year terms. The President of the Los Angeles City Counc ...
and
California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...
*
Lou Kimzey Lou Kimzey (Sr.) (1928-1997) was the creator and publisher of the biker magazines Easyriders and Iron Horse. Lou Kimzey was inducted into the Sturgis Motorcycle Hall of Fame in August 2009. History In the early 1970s, after his post as Creative ...
– Magazine editor and publisher *
JaQuel Knight JaQuel Knight (born August 6, 1989) is an American choreographer and dancer. Born in North Carolina and raised in Atlanta, he has worked with Beyoncé on many of her most notable dances, including on " Single Ladies", " Formation" and the hist ...
– Choreography and dancer *
Alan Leitner Alan Leitner is an American abstract artist. He was born in 1947 in an ethnically diverse section of Los Angeles. Alan was the middle of three children in a Jewish family. He received his B.S. in art in 1971 from Woodbury University in Los Ang ...
– Abstract artist *
Kenneth Mejia Kenneth Mejia (born November 7, 1990) is an American activist, accountant, and politician, serving as the controller of Los Angeles since 2022. A member of the Democratic Party and a former Green, Mejia was a three-time candidate for the Unite ...
– activist, accountant, and
City Controller of Los Angeles The Los Angeles City Controller is an official in the government of the city of Los Angeles, California. The City Controller is the paymaster and chief accounting officer of the city. Along with the Mayor and the City Attorney, the City Controller ...
*
Star Parker Star Parker is an American syndicated columnist, Republican politician, author, and conservative political activist. In 1995, she founded the Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE). In 2010, she was the unsuccessful Republican nominee fo ...
– Republican politician * Joseph M. Souki
Speaker of the Hawaii House of Representatives The Speaker of the Hawaii House of Representatives is the speaker (politics), speaker (speaker (politics), presiding officer) of the Hawaii House of Representatives. Territorial House of Representatives After statehood References

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*
William Travilla William Travilla (March 22, 1920 – November 2, 1990), known professionally as Travilla, was an American costume designer for theatre, film, and television. He is perhaps best known for designing costumes for Marilyn Monroe in eight of her fil ...
– Costume designer


References


External links


Official website
{{authority control Universities and colleges in Los Angeles County, California Universities and colleges in the San Fernando Valley Universities and colleges in San Diego Architecture schools in California Business schools in California Design schools in the United States Fashion schools Liberal arts colleges at universities in the United States Buildings and structures in Burbank, California Private universities and colleges in California Educational institutions established in 1884 1884 establishments in California Schools accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges