Photo courtesy Ringling College.

As an institution, it is our mission not just to educate our students with the critical skill sets needed for their degrees, but to prepare them for and empower them in their professional careers from day one. This is how they will become the leaders of tomorrow.

Last October, we began a series of columns showcasing the diverse degree programs offered at Ringling College of Art and Design, and how we set our students up for success as the creative leaders of tomorrow. We know from numerous studies and reports (including Deloitte’s recent in-depth report on the creative economy) creative industries are likely to be the key drivers of economic growth over the long term. The Deloitte study notes as we begin to emerge from three years of pandemic-driven downturns, trends show the creative economy could grow by as much as 40% by 2030.

What does that mean? In short, Ringling College’s talented art and design graduates will be more in demand than ever before, and what’s more, they will be vital to the success of our future world economy. 

Ringling College is preparing its students – in every major – for this transformative evolution in art and design.

To be counted among the industry’s vanguard, and to prepare our students as best we can to work and lead in both today’s and tomorrow’s creative industries, Ringling College has added a variety of programs in recent years, including a Visual Studies BA program, a Virtual Reality Development BFA program – the first of its kind at any art and design college in the world – and an Entertainment Design BFA, with its focus on themed built environments. We also continue to competitively rank very highly worldwide in our other majors, including Illustration, Game Art, Graphic Design, Motion Design, and our Computer Animation program, currently ranked No. 1 in the world. 

An ever-expanding campus, coupled with state-of-the-art technology provide students with the tools to prepare for this exciting future. Our beautiful Alfred R. Goldstein Library, high-powered computer labs with the latest software across campus, the Richard and Barbara Basch Visual Arts Center, with its makerspaces for printmaking, glassblowing, woodworking, letterpress and photography, and the Ringling College Studio Labs, with two 8,400-square-foot sound stages and a post-production facility, all offer students an unparalleled opportunity to step into the future today.

And let’s not forget the Sarasota Art Museum. An extension of Ringling College of Art and Design, the Museum, housed in the repurposed Sarasota High School building, includes contemporary exhibitions by emerging artists, showcasing the art of our time. It truly is a dynamic “living laboratory” for contemporary art and education for Ringling College students, residents and visitors. 

People often ask me, “Larry, what are students able to do with an art and design degree? Is it really worth it?” My answer has always been, and is even more emphatic today when I say, “Yes! It is absolutely worth it! In fact, it may well be one of the most valuable degrees to hold in our near future.”

The reason? Because there are no limits to what students can do with these degrees. It’s obvious our graduates go on to animate award-winning films, exhibit work in world-class museums and galleries and design spaces, experiences and digital assets experienced by millions of users every single day, but our graduates are also business executives, entrepreneurs, creative directors and CEOs. They work for the CIA, General Motors, with sports teams, nonprofits, in the medical industry and in the tech industries like Google and Amazon. The opportunities are limitless.

As president of Ringling College for the past 23 years, it is easy for me to understand why Ringling College graduates leave school so well-prepared to turn their creative passion into a lifelong profession. It is my hope and my goal, on behalf of everyone at the institution, to help others see the undeniable value of a Ringling College education. 

While we hope the skills our graduates take with them prove to be invaluable on their journeys, it’s important to remember that it all begins with pursuing that singular passion, that one thing in our lives that simply won’t be denied. In the end that is what leads to success.

Dr. Larry Thompson is president of Ringling College of Art & Design.

Photo courtesy Ringling College.