The School of Architecture at Taliesin

The School of Architecture at Taliesin is a private, graduate school of architecture with campuses at Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona and Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin. The school focuses on the organic architecture design philosophy of its founder Frank Lloyd Wright.[1]

The School of Architecture at Taliesin
TypePrivate Architecture school
Established1932, 88 years ago
FounderFrank Lloyd Wright
PresidentAaron Betsky
Location
Scottsdale
,
Arizona
,
United States

33°36′22.8″N 111°50′45.5″W
Websitetaliesin.edu

Apprentices have worked on important Wright projects including the Johnson Wax Headquarters, Fallingwater, Guggenheim Museum, and Monona Terrace.[2]

The apprenticeship program evolved into the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, which was established in response to changing licensing requirements for architects, particularly the requirement to graduate from an accredited institution prior to sitting for the Architect Registration Examination. In 2017, the school changed its name to The School of Architecture at Taliesin.[3]

Academics

The school offers a three-year, project-based Master of Architecture degree, with a focus on organic architecture. The school is accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board and the Higher Learning Commission.[4]

2020 financial challenges

On January 28, 2020, the school announced that it would cease operations on both campuses and close by June 2020.[5][6][7] According to this announcement, the school's governing board determined that "the School did not have a sustainable business model that would allow it to maintain its operation as an accredited program."[8] This announcement followed the failure of discussions between the board and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation about the creation of new, non-accredited educational programs.[7] At the time of the announcement, the school indicated they were negotiating an agreement for the 30 currently enrolled students to transfer to The Design School at ASU's Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts.[7][8]

The planned closure followed a 2014 challenge to the school's accreditation by the Higher Learning Commission on the grounds that the accredited institution was not incorporated separately from its funding organization, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.[9][10] The school maintained its accreditation through the 2020 closure announcement by establishing itself as an independent entity.[8][11][3][12] Subsequently, students, alumni and staff clashed over proposed partnerships with other institutions and the school suffered financial difficulties.[13] It was reported that prior to the closure announcement, the school and the foundation were in talks to develop alternative educational programming that did not require accreditation.[7] According to the foundation, the proposals that emerged from these discussions were not approved by the school's board.[8]

Six weeks after announcing the pending closure, the school's board of director's reversed course and announced that the school had received new funding and was financially viable.[14][15] However, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation owns the land on which the school operates and has already terminated the school's lease effective July 31, 2020.[16] As of March 11, 2020, the school board expressed its intention to continue school operations and reopened admissions, despite no resolution with the Foundation being reached at that time.[17][18]

References
  1. "SOAT The School of Architecture at Taliesin". The School of Architecture at Taliesin. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  2. "SOAT Legacy". The School of Architecture at Taliesin. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  3. Messner, Matthew (2017-04-25). "Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture will change its name". The Architects Newspaper. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  4. "Admissions - SOAT". The School of Architecture at Taliesin. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  5. Hsieh, Steven (2020-01-28). "Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin Architecture School Is Shutting Down". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  6. Greenberger, Alex (2020-01-28). "Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin School of Architecture to Close After 88 Years". ARTnews.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  7. Franklin, Sydney (2020-01-28). "Frank Lloyd Wright's School of Architecture at Taliesin will close". Archpaper.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  8. Longhi, Lorraine (2020-01-28). "Frank Lloyd Wright's school of architecture at Taliesin West in Scottsdale to close after 88 years". azcentral. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  9. Haller, Sonja (2014-08-21). "Frank Lloyd Wright School faces accreditation loss". azcentral. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  10. Haller, Sonja (2014-08-28). "Tensions mount at Frank Lloyd Wright architecture school". azcentral. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  11. Messner, Matthew (2017-03-10). "Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture will keep accreditation". Archpaper.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  12. Wachs, Audrey (2015-12-28). "The Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture is $2 million closer to independent incorporation". Archpaper.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  13. Haller, Sonja (2015-08-07). "Frank Lloyd Wright school's future in jeopardy". azcentral. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  14. Barr, Greg (March 6, 2020). "Frank Lloyd Wright architecture school board reverses decision to close down". Phoenix Business Journal. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  15. Hilburg, Jonathan (2020-03-05). "Taliesin school board reverses vote, won't close the school". The Architect's Newspaper. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  16. Seltzer, Rick (March 6, 2020). "Former Frank Lloyd Wright School Will Fight to Stay Open". Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  17. Seltzer, Rick (11 March 2020). "Leaders at the former Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture vow to fight for a future at Taliesin". www.insidehighered.com. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  18. Karaim, Reed (11 March 2020). "The Battle to Save the School of Architecture at Taliesin". www.architectmagazine.com. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
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