Brooks Institute of Photography

Infobox_University
name =Brooks Institute


established =1945
type =Private, For Profit
staff =
faculty =
president =
provost =
students =Ric Tapia [http://www.tapiaphoto.com TapiaPhoto.com] , Stephen Thaxton [http://www.thaxtonimaging.com ThaxtonImaging.com] , Andy McNeil [http://www.mcneilimaging.com McNeilImaging.com]
MFA students =Barbara Pickles [http://www.barbarapickles.com BarbaraPickles.com]
city =Santa Barbara
state =California
country =USA
campus =suburban
website = [http://www.brooks.edu Brooks Institute]
address =801 Alston Road
Santa Barbara, CA 93108
telephone =[phone]"'

Brooks Institute is a for-profit college based in Santa Barbara, California and Ventura, California which is owned by Career Education Corporation. [ [http://www.careered.com/program_results.aspx?sycountryid=511 CEC directory of schools] ] Brooks offers four majors and a graduate program. The Professional Photography, and Masters of Fine Arts in Photography programs are based in Santa Barbara. The Graphic Design, Film and Video Production, and Visual Journalism programs are based in Ventura.

History

Brooks Institute of Photography was founded in 1945 by Ernest H. Brooks, Sr. The school was sold by Ernest H. Brooks, Jr. to Career Education Corporation (CEC) in 1999. Since then, CEC has expanded the school, including the purchase of a former production studio in which to base the school's motion picture program. In 2007, the school changed its name from Brooks Institute of Photography to Brooks Institute.

Programs of study

Brooks Institute has four separate academic programs.

Professional Photography, based in Santa Barbara, focuses on the following areas of specialization: Digital Imaging, Commercial, Advertising, Industrial/Scientific, Portraiture and Digital Media.

Film and Video Production, based in Ventura, is a study of filmmaking and production techniques, including proposals and budgeting, scripting, directing, and editing. Majors include, Feature Filmmaking, Commercial Filmmaking, Visual Effects and Animation.

Visual Journalism, based in Ventura, concentrates on teaching photojournalism.

Graphic Design is based in Ventura.

Master of Fine Arts in Photography, based in Santa Barbara, is a 61 credit, two year program. The MFA program allows students to benefit from higher technical, aesthetic and practical knowledge.

Campus

Brooks Institute has campuses in both Santa Barbara, California and Ventura, California. The Professional Photography Program facilities are located at the Santa Barbara campus. The Visual Journalism, Film and Video Production and Graphic Design classes are located at the facilities in Ventura.Brooks also has two libraries, one in Santa Barbara and one in Ventura, that contain thousands of books, journals and other publications. [http://www.brooks.edu "Brooks Institute website] ]

Accreditation

Brooks is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools which offers accreditation to mostly vocational schools. National accreditation should not be confused with regional accreditation. Most public and private universities are regionally accredited. [http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2005/10/19/transfer "Demanding Credit", Inside Higher Education website, dated Oct. 19, 2005 by Scott Jaschik] ] [http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/02/26/transfer "Tussling Over Transfer of Credit", Inside Higher Education website, February 26, 2007 by Doug Lederman] ] [http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/education/courses/distancelearn-09.html "What is the Difference Between Regional and National Accreditation", Yahoo! Education website] ] [http://www.useducation.com.pk/stpages/typesofaccreditation.html "Types of Accreditation", Education USA website] ] There are numerous regionally accredited schools, such as UCLA, USC, CSU Channel Islands, or UC Berkeley, which will not accept transfer credits from nationally accredited schools.

Controversy

In July 2005, the [http://www.bppve.ca.gov/ California Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education] (BPPVE) accused Brooks Institute of Photography and its parent corporation Career Education Corporation of persuading prospective students to enroll by "willfully misleading" them, "falsifying and omitting critical information." [ [http://ddunleavy.typepad.com/the_big_picture/2005/07/investigation_c.html "California Agency Alleges Brooks Institute of Photography "Willfully" Misled Students", The Big Picture, July 28, 2005] ] [ [http://insidehighered.com/news/2005/07/20/brooks "Calif. Reins In a For-Profit College", Inside Higher Education, July 20, 2005] ] [ [http://www.susanohanian.org/atrocity_fetch.php?id=4528 "The School That Skipped Ethics Class", Gretchen Morgenson, New York Times, July 24, 2005.] ] Brooks was given only a conditional approval to operate for the next two years with a hearing scheduled for February 2006, and ordered to provide "equitable restitution" to students going back to 1999. However, Brooks appealed the decision and at the hearing the judge determining that BPPVE had not complied with the mandatory provisions of the Education Code, and that it had wrongly denied Brooks Institute an opportunity to contest the Bureau's action prior to the time it was imposed. The California Department of Consumer Affairs (which oversees BPPVE) later reached the same conclusion. [ [http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=87390&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=857148& "Department of Consumer Affairs Invalidates Actions of California Bureau against Brooks Institute", Career Education Corp. press release, May 16, 2006] ] Brooks ultimately received unconditional renewal of its licensure. [ [http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/070424/20070424005526.html?.v=1 "Career Education Corporation Announces Renewal of Unconditional Licensure for Brooks Institute of Photography", Yahoo Business, April 21, 2007] ]

References

External links

* [http://www.brooks.edu/ Brooks Institute of Photography] - official web site