Dean: Donald J. Para
Associate Dean: Jay Kvapil
Administrative Services Manager: Patti Meylor-Brown
Directors, Development: Arléna Kauppi, Ed Fosmire
Director, Special Projects: Rosalinda O'Brien
Director, Technology: Martin Brenner
Executive Assistant to the Deans: Katy Kroll
Receptionist: Jamie Wentz
Director, University Art Museum: Christopher Scoates
Executive Director, Carpenter Performing Arts Center: Michelle Roberge
Director, California Institute for the Preservation of Jazz: Richard Birkemeier
College Office:
Academic Services 115
Telephone: (562) 985-4364
FAX: (562) 985-7883
The College of the Arts at California State University, Long Beach is one of the largest and most respected state supported arts colleges in the country. With more than 4,500 students studying in six departments, the College of the Arts (COTA) offers nationally recognized, fully accredited degree programs in Art, Dance, Design, Film and Electronic Arts, Music, and Theatre Arts. The College of the Arts is located in close proximity to the Los Angeles/Hollywood area and has many ties to the arts and entertainment industries. The curriculum focuses on professional development in the applied or performance fields of study. The goal of most students is professional employment as artists, designers, or performers in their chosen disciplines.
The learning opportunities within the College of the Arts reflect its commitment to the arts in all forms. For performers, artists, and scholars, the College of the Arts provides an environment designed for individual achievement. It offers programs to meet the needs of students who wish to:
At the undergraduate level, the College of the Arts offers a comprehensive variety of professional degree programs meeting the highest standards of excellence, including the:
For students seeking a liberal education with the arts as a focus, the departments of Art, Dance, Design, Music, Film and Electronic Arts, and Theatre Arts offer Bachelor of Arts degrees.
The Art Department also offers a comprehensive Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History.
Students wishing to earn a degree in arts education may choose from the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Art Education or the Bachelor of Music Degree in Instrumental or Choral/Vocal Music Education. Students may also earn a California Single Subject Credential in Art or Music, offered jointly between the College of the Arts and the College of Education.
At the graduate level, the College of the Arts offers outstanding professional degree programs, including the:
The College also offers the Master of Arts Degree in the Departments of Art and Music. For students seeking a graduate degree in arts education, the College offers the Masters of Arts Degree in Art Education, Dance Education, and Music Education.
The Art Department also offers a comprehensive Master of Arts Degree in Art History.
Other special programs in the College of the Arts include an Undergraduate certificate in Biomedical Illustration and a Graduate certificate in Museum Studies, both in the Department of Art.
Departments in the College are accredited by the major accrediting agency for their discipline: The National Association of Schools of Art and Design, The National Association of Schools of Dance, The National Association of Schools of Music, and the National Association of Schools of Theatre. The faculty of the College of the Arts is an accomplished group of artists and scholars who bring significant expertise and professional experience to their teaching assignments.
The College of the Arts is also home to the University Art Museum (a nationally accredited art museum which presents exhibitions of professional stature focusing primarily on contemporary artists) as well as the California Repertory Company and the California Institute for the Preservation of Jazz. California Repertory Company, the Theatre Arts Department’s graduate and professional theatre program, is the only company of its kind in the CSU system.
Major performance and exhibition facilities include the University Art Museum, the five Art Department Galleries, the University Theatre, the Studio Theatre, the Edison Theatre, the Gerald R. Daniel Recital Hall, the Martha Knoebel Dance Theater, and the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center. The extensive performance calendar generated by the wide-ranging curricula includes over 300 student and faculty concerts including music performances, film showcases, theatre productions, dance performances, art exhibitions, and design presentations. The College of the Arts is a highly visible part of the campus community, as well as an important cultural and economic resource in the Long Beach/Los Angeles and Orange County areas.
In March 2008, the CSULB Department of Music was officially designated the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, in recognition of a significant gift devoted to student scholarships. The Cole Conservatory of Music is one of the largest, most comprehensive music programs in the Western United States, with graduate and undergraduate degrees offered in performance, composition, history and literature, music education and jazz studies. Student and faculty recitals, combined with concerts by more than 20 performance ensembles, produce a calendar of more than 150 public performances each year, on campus and off.
The University Art Museum, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, is ranked among the top 10% of the nation’s 7,000-plus museums. The only accredited museum in the CSU system, it has achieved worldwide acclaim for its exhibitions, publications, and collections of contemporary artworks. In 1999, the museum was the recipient of the Hampton Collection, a $3.2 million gift featuring 85 stunning mid-century abstractions by 42 artists.
The Carpenter Performing Arts Center opened in 1994. Designed by local architect Donald Gibbs, the elegant performance hall has enriched the surrounding community with hundreds of music, dance, film, and theatre events. The Carpenter Center, which seats 1,065 patrons, can accommodate large or small performing ensembles, film screenings, concerts, conferences, and other special events.
The Jazz Institute is a state agency housed in the College of the Arts. The Institute’s mission is to provide jazz education, outreach, performance, and preservation services for the western region of the United States. The Jazz Institute has acquired more then 50,000 records, 7,500 compact discs, 5,000 tapes, and thousands of books, periodicals, photos, and memorabilia, as well as a collection of broadcast transcriptions and hundreds of hours of filmed and videotaped performances.
