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Photo Institute Faces Possible Closure Over Recruiting Claims
A state consumer agency has threatened to shut down the Brooks Institute of Photography, a well-known school with campuses in Santa Barbara and Ventura, for allegedly lying to students about the amount of help they could expect from the school in finding jobs and about the amount of money they could make.



Photo school will appeal state findings
Brooks Institute will keep operating
By John Scheibe, jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com
July 21, 2005

Brooks Institute of Photography plans to appeal a report by a state education watchdog agency that said it committed "a pervasive pattern of misrepresentation" to prospective students about the potential for jobs and salaries after graduation, a school spokeswoman said Wednesday.

Inspectors from the California Bureau of Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education alleged in a report issued last week that the school, which has campuses in Santa Barbara and just north of Ventura, also failed to help students find jobs after completing the program, despite promises to the contrary.

The school, which has about 2,000 students, also is alleged to have tampered with student files and admitted unqualified students to boost tuition, which typically runs about $23,000 a year.

Brooks spokeswoman Tracy Lorenz would not comment on the allegations, saying only that the school welcomed the chance to present its side of the story at a yet-to-be scheduled hearing in Sacramento. Greg Strick, president of the for-profit school, was in Sacramento on Wednesday making arrangements for the hearing, Lorenz said.

Meanwhile, Brooks will continue to operate, she said. But to do so, it will have to meet conditions set by regulators, including equitably reimbursing all students enrolled at the famed photography school since mid-1999. The payments could run into the millions of dollars.

Those conditions will not be imposed until the school has a chance to defend itself in the appeals hearing. For now, the school will not lose its accreditation, Lorenz said.

Founded in 1945, Brooks has a reputation as a leader in photographic, motion picture and video training. It opened the Ventura campus in January 2002 when it moved into a 73,000-square-foot building on North Ventura Avenue where movies were made, including the Julia Roberts hit "Erin Brockovich."

Marco Somaini, 25, decided to enroll in video production and graphic design at Brooks in September 2001 after dropping out of an electrical engineering program in his native Switzerland.

He said he was under no illusions about how hard it might be to land a job in the intensely competitive field of advertising, even with a degree from Brooks.

"Fortunately, I got lucky," he said. He was offered a job at a San Luis Obispo ad agency within a month of graduating from Brooks in December 2004.

Somaini said he was also fortunate in that unlike other students, he was able to pay for his studies out of his own pocket.

"For me, it was a worthwhile experience," he said.

Oak Park resident Omri Waisman is also confident his training at Brooks will pay off, even though he's $100,000 in debt after 21/2 years at the school.

While he's studying photojournalism, Waisman, 25, is earning about $40,000 a year freelancing as an architecture and interior design photographer. He said he likely would not earn nearly as much if he were working for a newspaper or other publication, given his limited experience.

Chris Cantle of Ojai said it used to be that Brooks students needed to have experience in photography and a portfolio to be considered for admission.

"Now they're letting students in straight out of high school," said Cantle, 22.

Cantle, who plans to travel around the world and become a war photographer once he graduates, said he's seen plenty of students drop out of Brooks after deciding a career in photography or another visual art isn't for them.

"By the time they figure this out, they can easily already owe $10,000 or more" in student loans, Cantle said.