A new College of Arts will open its doors at Georgia State in July 2017. According to a Georgia State press release, the new academic unit will “focus on education in arts and related media, promote creativity and respond to the changing needs of artists, on- and off-campus.”
The college will include the School of Music, the Welch School of Art and Design, the film and theater component from the Department of Communication, the Center for Collaborative and International Arts and the Center for Educational Partnerships from the School of Music. All of which are currently part of the College of Arts and Sciences.
The creation of this college is part of Georgia State’s 2011 strategic plan to emphasize the university’s arts and media.
Dr. Wade Weast, former associate dean of Music and Fine Arts, has been named founding dean of the new College of Arts.
Weast said the college will elevate the arts at the university and as a result public performances, exhibitions and film screenings will become more visible on-campus, according to the press release.
“Georgia State’s increasing number of residential students will enjoy the benefits of a more robust collection of on-campus public performances, exhibitions and film screenings,” Weast said. “Our college will foster a heightened focus on entrepreneurship, creativity and collaboration.”
Georgia State student Sam Ogbeide, a theater major, said the development of the new arts college will provide more opportunities for art majors to excel.
“I think it will give art more relevance at Georgia State, which I think has been overshadowed by other major colleges,” Ogbeide said.
