ATLANTA — A well known Atlanta portfolio school is closing its doors for good.
After 27 years, The Creative Circus announced the school is set to shut down operations in late 2023, according to a Tuesday statement.
The school is an icon in the advertising industry, and has been educating students in creative fields for nearly three decades. It offered two-year portfolio programs for people seeking to land roles at ad-agencies.
"We are deeply saddened – dare we say, heartbroken – to share this news," a statement from The Creative Circus reads. "Nothing means more to us than our students, past and present, and we are insanely proud of the legacy and indelible mark Circus graduates have made, and will continue to make, in the creative world. "
In a statement to 11Alive, a spokesperson with The Creative Circus said among the "myriad of factors" to ceasing operations, the largest one was declining enrollment, explaining the pandemic hit them "really hard."
"We continue to get very good students and we have high placement rates. But the quantity keeps going down and we feel that will eventually reduce the quality of what we can offer. So we decided not to take in any more classes and focus on getting our current students a great education and then getting them into good jobs," a spokesperson said.
The agency will no longer accept new student enrollment after the spring 2022 quarter.
"We are steadfast in our commitment to our current students' education and will remain open until the completion of their respective programs/portfolio readiness," the statement said.
Although the school has less than two years before instruction comes to an end, they said the "show must go on" until that point comes.
"We're full steam ahead on our industry-leading Friday Forum speaker series, upcoming portfolio reviews, and readying our students to hit the ground running," the statement reads.
According to The Creative Circus website, the transcript requests for former students can now be made online here.
"What an absolute privilege it's been to teach, mentor and befriend so many of the best and brightest. What a pleasure it's been to be a valued partner to so many of you out there in the industry," the statement said.
