Paier College in Bridgeport denied authorization to open for fall semester
Paier art college, which three years ago relocated from Hamden to part of the University of Bridgeport campus to help stabilize that then-struggling institution, will not have a fall semester after state education officials Monday denied the school’s certification renewal.
The facility serves around 200 undergraduate students, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, which is part of the U.S. Department of Education. In 2022-23, the institution awarded 35 degrees, including one master’s degree.
About 61 percent of student are recipients of Pell grants federal grants given out to lower-income students. Black and Hispanic students make up about 45 percent of the student body, the data show.
The average annual cost to attend after financial aid is around $30,300, about $10,000 higher than the median cost of other colleges and universities. The school’s graduation rate sits just below that of other four-year institutions, the data shows.
In a statement, the Connecticut Office of Higher Education explained it turned down the for-profit Paier’s application after twice extending the deadline. The first time was to allow the college to turn in a complete submission, while the second extension was for agency staff and independent evaluators to complete their review after Paier filed its paperwork in late July.
The higher education office said it gathered eight “subject matter experts” whose process, which included a site visit, determined the college “failed to comply with eight approval standards,” including having adequate faculty, curriculum, facilities, equipment and library resources, a proper governing board and post-graduation career/placement counseling.
