Art Institute of Atlanta

The Art Institute of Atlanta is a private, for-profit art school in Dunwoody, Georgia. It is owned by Education Principle Foundation. The school is one of a number of Art Institutes, a franchise of art colleges with many branches in North America that was until 2017 owned and operated by Education Management Corporation. EDMC owned the college from 1975 until 2017, when, facing significant financial problems and declining enrollment, the company sold the Art Institute of Atlanta, along with 30 other Art Institute schools, to Dream Center Education, a Los Angeles-based Pentecostal organization.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the Art Institute of Atlanta has a 21% graduation rate and a 15% student loan default rate.
History.
The Art Institute of Atlanta was founded in 1949 as Massey Business College, with diploma programs in basic business and secretarial skills. The school added liberal arts, fashion, and interior design during the next two decades. After becoming The Art Institute of Atlanta in 1975, the college shifted its focus to a creative applied arts curriculum. Located at 3376 Peachtree Road (at Stratford Road,) N.E., Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia (the 5 story building was torn down around 2004.) Accreditation by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools soon followed. In 1999, the college moved to its current location; a 5-story building in Sandy Springs and has since expanded to a second building across the street. In 2004, the school added Audio Production to their growing list of programs. The newest program, Fashion & Retail Management, was added in January 2007.
In fall 2010, the student body was 3,335. By 2016-17, Ai-Atlanta's enrollment had declined to 1,582.
It awards associate's and bachelor's degrees, including Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degrees, Bachelor of Arts (BA) degrees, and Bachelor of Science (BS) degrees, and also offers diploma and non-degree programs.
Branches (closed).
Several Art Institutes schools were branches of the Art Institute of Atlanta. These branches are now closed.