A round of layoffs at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) this summer is raising alarms at one of the best-known arts schools in the country as the institution grapples with rising costs.
The Santa Clarita-based private arts school laid off 12 administrative employees in July, including five unionized workers and seven non-union workers, claiming in a schoolwide message that CalArts needed to cut expenses in the face of a $15 million deficit this year.
But faculty and staff members are questioning the administration’s decision, arguing that the layoffs could harm the school’s ability to train and nurture the next generation of artists.
“Everyone was disappointed in this having to happen at all when we’re working so hard to try to better serve the population,” Emily Lytle-Painter, a web and digital media producer at CalArts and union member, told Hyperallergic. “When we were trying to go into discussions with the administration, we felt like there were other avenues.”
Tensions between CalArts employees and school leadership have been simmering since last fall, when dozens of faculty and staff decided to form a union after enduring what they described as years of stagnant wages, increased workloads, and minimal benefits. In December, CalArts faculty delivered a letter to President Ravi Rajan announcing their intention to organize with United Auto Workers in a unit that would represent approximately 600 workers. They held elections in March and ratified the union a month later.
At the same time, the school had been struggling with enrollment, which declined by about 12 percent since the pandemic, from 1,532 students in 2019 to 1,353 students in 2023 (tuition surpassed $60,000 per year in 2025–26).
In an April 2024 interview, Rajan told Inside Higher Education that CalArts was “fiscally sound.” But the school proceeded with several budget cuts to reduce its operating costs, including tighter spending controls, hiring delays and travel limitations, and adjustments to admissions and financial aid packages. These measures, Rajan said in a schoolwide message, saved the school $5.5 million.
This spring, CalArts sought to reduce its headcount and sent voluntary separation and early retirement notices to between 50 and 60 faculty and staff, union leaders estimated. But only 32 employees, including 22 faculty and 10 staff, took the school’s offer and Rajan moved ahead with layoffs despite vociferous objections from the union.
“I acknowledge how painful this news is,” Rajan wrote in a July 15 letter to faculty and staff reviewed by Hyperallergic. “These are not just abstract positions—they are roles held by our colleagues, teammates, and friends. I’m immensely grateful for their contributions and mindful of the weight of this moment for our community.”
CalArts has not yet responded to a request for comment.
When the school announced layoffs, union leaders bargained with the administration for three months of severance, instead of two weeks of pay per year of service; three months of COBRA insurance; and priority rehiring in any vacant positions over the next two years for anyone who was laid off.
“Everyone is understandably sad and worried, and there’s a general feeling of having to move forward with what we have,” Lytle-Painter said. “I personally was really proud of our bargaining team being able to bargain for increased benefits for those affected by the layoffs. That’s part of why we have a union.”
Thomas Leeb, an adjunct faculty member in the School of Music and union member, said he is approaching the next academic year that starts on September 8 with mixed emotions.
“A lot of institutional knowledge has left with the voluntary separation program, and that’s sad and it hurts. At the same time, there’s a bit of optimism,” Leeb said, referencing the newly formed union. “Someone I spoke to who has been at CalArts for 25 years said this is the first time he felt protected.”