The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is sponsoring five students from Puerto Rico for the spring 2018 semester, covering the students’ tuition and housing costs, as well as providing support to cover meals.
The education of these students of Puerto Rico’s School of Visual Arts and Design (Escuela de Artes Plásticas y Diseño de Puerto Rico), a public art college in San Juan accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD), was interrupted by the devastation of Hurricanes Irma and Maria last year. These hurricanes caused widespread infrastructure damage throughout the island and temporarily closed the school.
While the school rebuilds—it plans to reopen later in 2018—MICA and other member institutions of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art & Design (AICAD) banded together to provide students of the School of Visual Arts and Design a chance to continue their art and design educations without further delay.
The students, already on the MICA campus, have diverse majors that include painting, printmaking, animation and digital art. They will be fully integrated into student life at MICA, and will receive mentorship from MICA graduate students.
“What’s most important is for these students to be able to continue their educations uninterrupted here at MICA and in Baltimore. We are incredibly grateful to be able to host them, and are working to make them feel at home here while they restart their studies,” said David Bogen, MICA’s vice president for academic affairs and provost.