The Art Institute of Portland was a for-profit art school in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, which briefly operated as a non-profit institution before it closed in 2018. The school was one of a number of

Art Institutes The Art Institutes (AI) were a private for-profit system of art schools in the United States. The Art Institutes offered programs at the certificate, associate's, bachelors, and master's levels. By 2012, there were 50 campuses with roughly ...

, a franchise of for-profit art colleges with many branches in North America, owned and operated by

Education Management Corporation Education Management Corporation (EDMC) was a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based operator of for-profit post-secondary educational institutions in the United States and Canada. The company was founded in 1962. At its peak in 2011, Education Manageme ...

. EDMC owned the college from 1998 until 2017, when, facing significant financial problems and declining enrollment, the company sold the Art Institute of Portland, along with 30 other Art Institute schools, to Dream Center Education, a Los Angeles–based Pentecostal organization. Dream Center permanently closed 18 Art Institute schools, including the Art Institute of Portland, at the end of 2018.

Campus

Located in Portland's

Pearl District The Pearl District is an area of Portland, Oregon, formerly occupied by warehouses, light industry and railroad classification yards and now noted for its art galleries, upscale businesses and residences. The area has been undergoing significa ...

, the school had two computer labs, multiple animation and video labs, a recording studio, library, and a public art gallery. The Marcia Policar Gallery at The Art Institute of Portland displayed both student work and work of local artists and designers.

History

The school was formerly named Bassist College and was acquired by Education Management Corporation (EDMC) in 1998. Bassist College was founded in 1963 by Norma and Donald Bassist as a fashion institute for women. A required course schedule of four full-time (15 credit hours, or five course) quarters, including summer term, makes it possible to complete a four-year degree in three years. The school is accredited by the Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Accreditation of an institution of higher education by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities indicates that the institution meets or exceeds criteria for the assessment of institutional quality evaluated through a peer review process. On March 3, 2017, EDMC announced the execution of a definitive agreement for the sale of substantially all the assets of EDMC and its schools to Dream Center Foundation (DCF), a not-for-profit foundation. The sale was completed on October 17, 2017. On July 2, 2018, the staff and faculty of the Art Institute of Portland were informed that the school would close on December 31, 2018.

References

{{authority control 1963 establishments in Oregon 2018 disestablishments in Oregon Pearl District, Portland, Oregon

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

Universities and colleges in Portland, Oregon Universities and colleges established in 1963 Educational institutions disestablished in 2018 Former for-profit universities and colleges in the United States