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San Diego’s NewSchool of Architecture & Design, once a lively ‘idea factory,’ is now struggling to survive
The San Diego Union Tribune
Gary Robbins
December 22, 2022
The accrediting commission WASC says the 42-year-old private, for-profit institute “may not have resources sufficient to ensure long term viability if current trends continue.”
The NewSchool of Architecture & Design, a decades-old “idea factory” that has helped revitalize downtown’s East Village and influenced the larger look and feel of San Diego, is facing an array of problems that threaten the institution’s future.
The Western Association of Schools and Colleges, or WASC, which granted the school accreditation in 2014, said in a recent review that the private, for-profit business “may not have resources sufficient to ensure long term viability if current trends continue.”
The association noted that NewSchool, whose financial health is deeply tied to enrollment, had 368 students this spring, a decline of nearly 190 students since fall 2017. The institute had nearly 700 students in 2011.