California College of the Arts was founded in 1907 by Frederick Meyer at Oakland, California. It is the largest regionally accredited, independent school of art and design in the western United States.
The college was formely known as the School of the California Guild of Arts and Crafts, and later renamed as the California College of Arts and Crafts in 1936. In 1922, a 4-acre plot of land was bought at College Avenue in Oakland. With the united effort of students, faculty, alumni, and the Meyer family, the dilapidated buildings and grounds were transformed into a college campus.In recent years, Oliver Art Center, housing a professional gallery, was opened on campus.
California College of the Arts awards various degrees such as Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Architecture, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Arts and Master of Architecture.
Majors include wood/furniture/glass design, interior design, industrial design, fashion design, film/video, creative writing, and visual studies.
New buildings were also contructed on the campus such as Martinez Hall for painting and printmaking, the Treadwell Ceramic Arts Center and Founder's Hall, which contains the Meyer Library, the Isabelle Percy West Gallery, and Nahl Hall. Four new graduate programs in curatorial practice, design, visual criticism, and writing were also started in the college.
In 1996, a new campus was established in San Francisco, which holds the architectural and design programs. The college opened the Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, a forum for the discussion and presentation of leading edge art and culture, in 1998.
California College of the Arts is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and College, the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, the National Architectural Accrediting Board, and the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research.