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24 n e w h a v e n B I Z | M a r c h 2 0 2 2 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n Career Opportunities By Linda Keslar C areers that service the modern digital world are red hot. e Connecticut Department of Labor projects a continued boom in demand for jobs in application, web and systems soware develop- ment by state employers, estimated at more than 20% growth to 2028. ough these are occupations tradi- tionally considered by computer science majors, educators at Paier College, the only independent art college in the state, saw this trend as an opportunity to pro- vide its students with training to com- pete for these high-demand positions. Internet and social media are playing a major role in merging the boundaries between technology and art and the cre- ation of art-adjacent careers, said Joseph Bierbaum, president of Paier College, which recently relocated to Bridgeport. "As technology is streamlined, the fundamental skills necessary for these types of opportunities lend themselves well to students interested in design and marketing," Bierbaum said. Last January, the privately-owned college announced it was updating its traditional art and design curricula and adding newly-accredited programs in web and mobile app design. Paier is actively enrolling up to 24 stu- dents for the newly-launched web app Following campus relocation, art school Paier College pivots curriculum with launch of web, mobile app design programs program, with plans to enroll another similarly-sized group in two months. e mobile app design program will be launched in the upcoming fall semester, with total enrollment in both programs initially projected to be 100 students annually. Graduates are looking at the potential for high wages. Web developers and digital designers earned a median salary of $77,200 in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Preparing art students for these emerging fields is also in keeping with the college's traditional mission of forg- ing its graduates into successful careers. "Our roots are as a commercial art school," Bierbaum said. "Paier has always wanted to make sure students go out and make a return on their invest- ment." e new programs are part of the college's plans to grow its academics and student body in the coming years. Cur- rently the new programs will be limited to about 100 students annually, though interest generated just a week aer the announcement suggests enrollment could be five times that and still not meet the demand, Bierbaum said. Embracing change With a traditional focus on educating students in disciplines including illus- tration, graphic design, interior design and photography, change is nothing new to Paier, which has undergone several transformations in its 75-year history. Founded by Edward Paier, an ac- complished artist and teacher, and his wife Adele Kohn, as the Paier School of Applied Art in 1946 in West Haven, the specialty institution took on students from the failing Whitney School of Art and moved to New Haven in 1954. In the early 1960s, operations moved to Hamden and expanded into a 3-acre campus, though one that never housed students. In 1982, accompanied with a name change to the Paier College of Art, the school was accredited as a four- year, degree-grant- ing college. Many successful artists rank among its alumni, including Walter Wick, co-creator of the "I Spy" book series; comic book artist Howard Porter; abstract expressionist painter Vance Larson; oil painter Joseph Reboli; and illustrator and writer of children's books Ruth Sanderson, among others. But like many small art colleges, Paier has shown cracks in its enrollment over the past decade. With the U.S. high school graduate population remaining flat between 2006 and 2016, art schools, particularly smaller ones, have seen de- clining enrollment, based on a study by the Association of Independent Colleges of Art & Design. e trend has forced some schools to merge, even shutter. In the winter 2019 semester, Paier had only 55 students, according to Bier- baum. He began his tenure as president in 2019 following the retirement of Jonathan Paier, son of the founders. Spending the previous two years serving as a consultant to the college, Bierbaum said the low enrollment reflected de- mographic trends as well as a failure in marketing. "Paier's academics were great, and the faculty amazing," he said. "ey weren't getting the call out." Strategic shift Bierbaum was previously the pres- ident of Stone Academy, which offers two-year training programs to license nurses at several campuses including in Hartford and Waterbury. He was credited with nearly doubling Stone Academy's enrollment over a five-year period, an increase he attributes to bet- ter marketing and curriculum changes. ese are strategies he's now employ- ing to attract new students to Paier Col- lege, the shortened name announced in March 2021. A move to a new site was also part of a long-term plan, he said, but was expedited when the University of Bridgeport (UB) was acquired by East Hartford-based Goodwin University in 2021, though it continues to function independently with its own leadership. Paier signed on as a partner in a co-location model, transitioning its Hamden operations over last summer to Joseph Bierbaum Paier College has relocated to the University of Bridgeport's campus as it charts a new path forward with new and expanded academic programs. Paier's new building at the University of Bridgeport. PHOTOS | CONTRIBUTED

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