THE CASE FOR SUPPORT
PACIFIC NORTHWEST COLLEGE OF ART
WHEN YOU MAKE A GIFT TO PNCA, YOU ARE OPENING DOORS, REMOVING BARRIERS, AND GIVING STUDENTS THE GIFT OF ACCESS TO LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCES. PNCA is a place of boundless possibility where creativity reigns and where students are at the heart of everything we do. Our mission is to prepare students for a life of creative practice. We achieve this by providing our students with the tools, resources, and confidence they need to ask important questions, take big risks, and dare to make a difference in the world. These traits are hallmarks of a PNCA education. We cultivate critical thinkers, artists, and makers, who are unafraid to lean into challenges and lead social change. With these tools, our graduates are equipped to solve current issues and become future leaders. Throughout our 100+ year history, PNCA faculty, staff, students, and alumni have been instrumental in shaping the cultural landscape of the Pacific Northwest, and with your help, as we embark on an exciting new chapter with our planned merger into Willamette University, we will continue to be a driving force for creativity in the region for generations to come.
Artwork: Hayato Kikkawa, Senior Painting Major
PACIFIC NORTHWEST COLLEGE OF ART
Most recently, our students and faculty have weathered the challenges of the current pandemic, constantly adapting and forging ahead. We have taken a flexible and innovative approach to ensure we are meeting the additional needs of our students and keeping everyone safe during this unprecedented time, through measures such as increased access to technology equipment loans, and mentoring and mental health services — and so, despite the difficulties presented by a COVID-world, PNCA has continued to retain students at an incredible level. But the pandemic has nevertheless hit both the student population and higher education hard — and the road to recovery will depend on community support. Today’s students are facing extreme challenges, including job losses, financial insecurity, the stress of isolation and online learning, and direct impact on the health of family and friends. The determination, talent, and tenacity we see in our students are all key ingredients to success — but even the most hardworking, brilliant student can be thwarted by financial barriers - and financial need at PNCA is high. In recent years, we have seen a dramatic increase in student Pell Grant eligibility at PNCA, which is based on high financial need. COVID-19 is further exacerbating student financial need, and as the pandemic continues, our students are struggling; some are dealing with COVID-related illness and death in their families; they are experiencing increased rates of anxiety; the availability of work-study positions has decreased because of the remote environment; and while around 60% of our students typically work to help support their education, many have lost jobs, found their hours reduced or been forced to quarantine when coworkers test positive. These students often face a dire choice: paying their tuition bills, or meeting their basic needs.
PACIFIC NORTHWEST COLLEGE OF ART
PHILANTHROPY HAS AN ENDURING AND TRANSFORMATIVE IMPACT Philanthropy has an enduring and transformative impact on the life of a PNCA student. It helps make sure that no student misses their calling because of financial hardship. It can literally transform the story of a student’s life, by fuelling their success, and empowering them to live a life of creative practice. Your support of PNCA supports the leading creative voices and visionaries of tomorrow. That’s why it’s our pledge to make an art and design education more affordable and accessible for all our students. This year, PNCA will dedicate over $4.6M in institutional funds to offset students’ tuition costs — but in these tough times, more help is needed to reach even more students, through our General Scholarships, Equity & Leadership Scholarships, and our Emergency Tuition Assistance Fund.
Every semester as part of the Foundation curriculum, 3-D students take to the “runway” to present their cardboard couture creations.
PACIFIC NORTHWEST COLLEGE OF ART
FINANCIAL SUPPORT PROGRAMS AT PNCA Students who need financial support in order to pursue their dream of a PNCA education can get help through our tuition assistance programs — General Scholarships, Equity & Leadership Scholarships, and the Emergency Tuition Assistance Fund. Each year, PNCA awards over $4.6 million in financial support to help students afford the cost of pursuing a degree at PNCA. Receiving help in paying for tuition is top priority for most students and families.
GENERAL SCHOLARSHIPS General Scholarships serve many of our students, and are critical to ensure that each student who aspires to pursue a future in art and design and shows exceptional promise has the opportunity to make that decision, regardless of their family’s ability to pay.
“The scholarship I received not only provided financial support for my graduate studies, but also knowledge that the school trusted my creative practice! Without this support I wouldn’t have been able to make the huge decision to relocate for my MFA, especially during the pandemic.” Jenn Sova, 1st year Visual Studies MFA
EQUITY & LEADERSHIP SCHOLARSHIPS
“This scholarship made a huge difference for me. Receiving this award brought my tuition balance to zero, and now for the first time, I do not need to work full time while going to school and can focus my time and energy in the studio.” Eduardo Soto, Senior Illustration Major and 2020 Equity & Leadership Scholarship recipient
We are committed to addressing inequities in access to education and to increasing diversity and offering an inclusive environment at PNCA. Our Equity & Leadership Scholarships provide tuition assistance to BlPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) students and students with a demonstrated commitment to working with impacted communities to end racial injustice are a key component of this work. We know that COVID-19 has an inordinate impact on communities of color, who are disproportionately affected by job losses and lack of access to health care. Your support of these scholarships help us to create a space where all students thrive.
EMERGENCY TUITION ASSISTANCE This program provides emergency tuition assistance grants to students who are at risk of dropping out of school due to an unexpected financial crisis such as a job loss, family crisis, or the impact of COVID-19. These tuition relief grants offer a crucial safety net for students facing the impossible choice between paying their tuition bill, or meeting their basic needs.
“I had paid out of pocket all that I could and my student aid was exhausted. I work and am head of my household, but I needed more support. The Emergency Tuition Assistance I received allowed me to return to school for my last 18 credits, without which I wouldn’t have been able to complete my degree.” Anonymous, 2020-21 Emergency Tuition Assistance recipient
Our planned merger with Willamette University will create so many exciting new opportunities and pathways for our students! Any gift you make to PNCA, pre- or postmerger will continue to directly support PNCA students and PNCA programs.
PACIFIC NORTHWEST COLLEGE OF ART
Artwork: Jackson Pyryt, Junior Painting Major
CHALLENGE SPONSOR
PLATINUM SPONSOR Al Solheim GOLD SPONSORS Scott D. Musch & John & Suzanne Bishop
SILVER SPONSORS
Casey Mills & Carmen Calzacorta
in honor of Roger Hull
BRONZE SPONSOR
SUPPORT PNCA TODAY pnca.edu/spring-appeal give@pnca.edu | 503-821-8955
Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Center for Art and Design 511 NW Broadway Portland, Oregon 97209 pnca.edu
PNCA Board of Governors Scott D. Musch, Board Chair Eloise Damrosch, Board Vice Chair John Bishop, Board Secretary Nick Ehlen, Board Treasurer David G. Ellis, Interim President
Sally Schoolmaster, Faculty Governor Al Solheim Lauren Stumpf, MFA ‘16, Alumna Governor Vanessa Triplett Sherrie Wolf ‘74, Alumna Governor
Anthony Belluschi Kay Campbell Bill Foster MK Guth, Faculty Governor Jason Halstead Mariam Higgins Linda Hutchins ‘88 Zeljka Carol Kekez Nolan Lienhart David Savinar
Governor Emeriti: Mary Lee Boklund Margaret Bolger Ann Edlen Susan Hammer in Memoriam Jamey Hampton Nan Koerner in Memorium John Casey Mills John Shipley Judy Wyss
PNCA is an accredited institutional member of both the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities Design and a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design.