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and are planning to unite.

The two institutions have signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) and Cornish will become the Cornish College of the Arts at Seattle University (SU).

“Seattle University joining forces with Cornish will combine two storied Seattle institutions of higher learning into one,” SU President Eduardo Peñalver said in a written announcement. “It will create incredible new opportunities for our students to expand their educational horizons and for faculty to pursue innovative interdisciplinary collaborations.”

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SU said that Cornish would continue to operate at its South Lake Union campus. Cornish says in its “The mission of Cornish College of the Arts is to provide students aspiring to become practicing artists with an educational program of the highest possible quality, in an environment that nurtures creativity and intellectual curiosity, while preparing them to contribute to society as artists, citizens, and innovators.”

“We are excited about the prospect of joining with such a well-respected and mission-driven institution to provide a robust fine arts education in downtown Seattle and continue the mission of our founder, Nellie Cornish, who believed in education through exposure to all the arts,” Cornish College of the Arts Interim President Emily Parkhurst said in a statement.

The boards of trustees at both institutions have approved the LOI, marking the first step in the process. SU and Cornish College will conduct a thorough review of Cornish’s finances, holdings, operations, and compliance before a final decision is made.

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“It is important to stress that today’s announcement represents just the beginning of a lengthy process as we work out the details of the combination of our two complex institutions,” Peñalver said in the statement. SU’s mission statement is: “Seattle University is dedicated to educating the whole person, to professional formation, and to empowering leaders for a just and humane world.”

The move to full integration will involve several steps over the next two years. SU will undertake a thorough due diligence review of Cornish’s finances, holdings, and operations. Once that is complete, SU will become the controlling entity of Cornish, expected by the end of May 2025. During the transition, Cornish will retain its separate degree-granting authority, accreditation, and federal student aid participation.

A final agreement is expected by spring 2025. The deal needs approval from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) and the Department of Education.

The announcement follows SU receiving a $300 million art collection from philanthropist Richard Hedreen.

Bill Kaczaraba is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here. Follow Bill on X, formerly known as Twitter, and email him here.Ìý