In 1951, after graduating from Stanford University, Dr. Richard A. Stephens took over the Presidency from his parents. His vision led to the expansion of the Academy from an enrollment of fifty students in two rented loft spaces to a 5,200 student body, with continued expansion of department majors available. In 1966 the school was incorporated and granted authority to offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education of the State of California. The graduate program was inaugurated in 1977 and approved by 1983.
Dr. Elisa Stephens, the granddaughter of the school’s founder, succeeded her father as President of the Academy of Art University in 1992. Dr. Stephens has been committed to expanding the Academy’s curriculum to stay current with new technologies and industry trends, as well as making state-of-the art facilities and resources available to Academy students. In 2004, the name of the school was changed from Academy of Art College to Academy of Art University in recognition of its depth, scope and quality.
Today the University has more than 18,000 students, making it the largest private school of art and design in the country. Students now have the opportunity to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Arts, Associate of Arts, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Arts, Master of Architecture, Certificate Programs or Continuing Art Education courses, with over 30 areas of academic emphasis.Our Fashion School provides students with a global vision and a faculty of professionals who instruct, inspire and mentor utilizing their technical and design expertise while also encouraging the development of individual style. Students gain practical hands-on experience in their courses enabling them to confidently enter career paths in Fashion Design, Knitwear Design, Textile Design, Fashion Journalism, Fashion Styling, Merchandising and Visual Merchandising.
Renowned as one of the top fashion design schools in the nation, the School of Fashion provides students with unique opportunities to showcase their work to industry professionals and recruiters at the biannual fashion show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Lincoln Center in New York City. The Annual Graduation Fashion Show in San Francisco is another opportunity afforded Academy of Art University fashion students and has been heralded as the “Fashion Week of San Francisco” by both local and national members of the fashion industry. Fashion Journalism and Fashion Styling students work on the School of Fashion’s magazine projects and the Fashion School Daily Blog as well as on international publications and websites.
