History

• NASAD goes back to 1944, when a group of representatives of various art schools got together to begin discussions about forming a league of art schools. Four years, the group was established as the National Association of Schools of Design. In the following years, representatives of the group would travel from one school to another in order to observe how each institution conducted its classes. The original intent of the group was to exchange ideas on art education.
  
  

Function

• The National Association of Schools of Art and Design is a voluntary nonprofit organization consisting of schools, organizations and individual members. NASAD is recognized by U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation for its role in accrediting art education programs at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels. Beside accreditation, the association also sets guidelines and standards for college-level educational programs. NASAD also publishes pamphlets and other printed matter concerning the process of accreditation, as well as information about new developments and important research.
  
  

Overview of Schools

• Currently, there are over 300 institutions of higher learning accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. In order to be part of NASAD, these educational institutional must offer either a four-year bachelor's degree or a more advanced degree in the study of arts. Many of the approved schools are specialized art schools, while others are large universities with an excellent fine arts departments. Some of the schools in the latter group include places like Arizona State, University of Texas, Indiana University and Ohio State University. Prominent art schools like Pratt Institute, Art Institute of Atlanta, San Francisco Art Institute and Sotheby's Institute of Art in New York are also on the list.
  
  

Importance

• Since NASAD is voluntary, not all art schools are part of the organization. On a similar note, NASAD does not rank schools. Their main goal is to establish educational standards for the American collegiate educational system. There are other art organizations besides NASAD that offer support and forums for art education schools, but none of these groups deals with accreditation.