The Art Institutes Appoints Veteran Administrator to Lead New Jacksonville Location

11/28/2006

(JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — November 22, 2006) The Art Institutes, a system of 32 education institutions located throughout North America, has selected Erika Orris as president of The Art Institute of Jacksonville. The Art Institutes has been providing programs in the creative and applied arts for more than 40 years and recently announced the newest location in Jacksonville. Classes are scheduled to begin January 8, 2007.

Orris comes to Jacksonville from Pittsburgh, where she served as vice president of high school programs in the marketing and admissions department of Education Management Corporation (EDMC), the parent company of The Art Institutes. In this role, Orris directed all high school recruiting efforts for The Art Institutes and managed an admissions staff of more than 180 across the country.

Orris also worked as a high school representative and as an associate director of admissions at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. During her time at this school, Orris organized open houses, conducted professional presentations to high school students, and trained a team of admissions representatives for The Art Institutes.

“The combination of working on both the school and corporate levels with EDMC and The Art Institutes has been invaluable to me,” said Orris. “Each step has helped build the foundation for this exciting opportunity and challenge. I’m anxious to begin a new chapter in both my professional and personal life as the president of the newest Art Institute location in such a beautiful city.”

Orris received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Pittsburgh.

The Art Institute of Jacksonville is currently enrolling students, and the first day of class is scheduled for January 8, 2007. Initially, the local school will offer bachelor’s degree programs in graphic design, interactive media design and interior design, and associate’s degree programs in graphic design and interactive media design. The school will occupy approximately 47,000 square feet at 8775 Baypine Road in the Baymeadows-I-95 area, providing ample room for students to develop their creative and technical skills during their time at The Art Institute.

The Art Institutes have three additional school locations in Florida: The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, The Art Institute of Tampa and Miami International University of Art & Design.

For information on classes at the new Art Institute of Jacksonville, call (800) 924-1589.