California College of the Arts announces scholarship to fund senior year tuition for Fine Arts students
Jeanette G. and Michael J. Lopez gift $2 million to create an endowed scholarship program at CCA
San Francisco, CA—January 9, 2023— California College of the Arts is pleased to announce a new high-impact, full-tuition scholarship for graduating seniors finishing their degrees in Fine Arts programs at CCA.
Five students within the division have been selected as the inaugural recipients of the Michael and Jeannette Lopez Endowed Scholarship based on artistic merit, as determined by California College of the Arts faculty. The recipients include Annabel De Vries (Photography), Theo Garvey (Film), Leo Lorren Burr (Photography), Aiden Paul (Painting and Drawing), and Jo Pinsky (Animation). The scholarship funds tuition and required fees for each student’s senior year, for a maximum of two semesters.
“This is an incredible opportunity for Fine Arts students at CCA,” said Sunny Smith, Dean of Fine Arts. “The recipients of this scholarship will be supported as they conclude their journey here and prepare to launch their creative careers. We are so appreciative of Michael and Jeanette Lopez for their generosity and support of arts and arts education in San Francisco.”
Student submissions were identified through the Fine Arts Junior Review, a review required for all juniors majoring in Fine Arts studio programs. The Junior Review is an opportunity for students to evaluate their artistic and educational development, in which students meet with a small interdisciplinary group of CCA professors to review their work. As part of this process, faculty recommend students for All College Honors. Those recommended for the All College Honors were eligible for the scholarship.
In November, a jury of four Fine Arts faculty convened to select the winners of CCA’s first Lopez scholarship award. Faculty included Lydia Greer, assistant professor of Animation; Heesoo Kwon, assistant professor of Animation; Karla Wozniak, associate professor of Painting and Drawing; and Sunny A. Smith, professor and dean of Fine Arts. The recipients showcased a strong body of work, unique points of view, and creative approaches to their respective areas of study. In spring 2024, the faculty jurors will review and select the next recipients of the scholarship as part of the $2 million gift.
About Jeanette and Michael Lopez
Michael Lopez is a 1963 alumnus of California College of Arts in Sculpture and received his MFA in Painting in 1970. He taught Ceramics and Ceramics Sculpture at CCA from 1964-1969, and later taught Ceramics at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill. He was an exhibiting artist, primarily known for non-functional ceramics that combine wheel thrown and hand building.
About California College of the Arts
Founded in 1907, California College of the Arts (CCA) educates students to shape culture and society through the practice and critical study of art, architecture, design, and writing. Benefitting from its San Francisco Bay Area location, the college prepares students for lifelong creative work by cultivating innovation, community engagement, and social and environmental responsibility.
CCA offers a rich curriculum of 22 undergraduate and 10 graduate programs in art, design, architecture, and writing taught by a faculty of expert practitioners. Attracting promising students from across the nation and around the world, CCA is one of the 10 most diverse colleges in the U.S. This year, U.S. News & World Report ranked CCA as one of the top 10 graduate schools for fine arts in the country in 2020.
Graduates are highly sought-after by companies such as Pixar/Disney, Apple, Intel, Meta, Gensler, Google, IDEO, Autodesk, Mattel, and Nike, and many have launched their own successful businesses. Alumni and faculty are often recognized with the highest honors in their fields, including Academy Awards, AIGA Medals, Fulbright Scholarships, Guggenheim Fellowships, MacArthur Fellowships, National Medal of Arts, and the Rome Prize, among others.
CCA is creating a new, expanded college campus at its current site in San Francisco, spearheaded by the architectural firm Studio Gang. The new campus design will be a model of sustainable construction and practice; will unite the college’s programs in art, crafts, design, architecture, and writing in one location to create new adjacencies and interactions; and will provide more student housing than ever before.