Photo of Warrick Carter by Robert Drea

Letter from the President

Dear Friends:

This fall, we expect to enroll close to 11,800 students—the largest number in our history. Nearly 4,000 of them will be new to our campus.

Our students participate in an innovative, semester-long orientation process that helps ensure their smooth transition to Columbia. These students (and their parents) get a big-picture view of Columbia—what we stand for, what we offer, what we expect from them and what they can expect from us. They also discover how a Columbia education prepares them not only for work within their chosen fields, but for life as creative individuals.

Good grades and a diploma are important goals, to be sure. But even more important is the experiential journey that our graduates have taken to earn those grades and that diploma, and the body of work they have created along the way. As Columbia students work in their chosen disciplines—whether film, theater, cultural studies, music, interactive multimedia, or a host of others—they are learning to meld theory and practice. They learn to work in a collaborative environment. They learn conceptual skills—the kind of skills required by the burgeoning creative climate of the global economy.

Our approach to education is supported by an ever-expanding body of knowledge that indicates an education in the arts produces deeper thinking, creative and flexible responses to problem solving, and a heightened sensitivity to cultural differences. These abilities are not only needed in art making, they are increasingly essential requirements for success in any field.

Today, the popular arts and media are among the nation’s biggest businesses and its biggest export.

Between 1992 and 2002, the number of nonprofit arts organizations grew 45 percent. The arts are integrated with every aspect of our economy, from web design and animation to the automotive industry, dentistry, and food services, and everything in between.

When parents ask us what value an education in the arts holds for their son’s or daughter’s future, we tell them that, at Columbia, we have always believed education in the arts offers essential preparation for the new world of work. Now, it seems, the rest of the world is catching up to our way of thinking.

Warm regards,

Warrick L. Carter, Ph.D.
President, Columbia College Chicago