Vanderbilt to open campus in San Francisco

Lurie said his team has been working to attract new universities to San Francisco, eventually leading to Vanderbilt deciding to have a physical presence in the city.

"We shared all the things that make San Francisco the center of innovation, a hub for creativity and a city on the rise, and we were honest about our challenges and opportunities," said Lurie. "Vanderbilt's decision sends a powerful message. It says that San Francisco remains one of the world's great places to live, to learn and to innovate. It says that this city is still a place where new ideas are born, tested and created."

Diermeier, who began his tenure as Vanderbilt's chancellor in 2019, said the goal of the university is to establish a campus where the education of engineers and entrepreneurs will integrate with that of artists and designers.

"Our goal in a sentence, is to create a place that creates creators," Diermeier said. "Our vision reflects the belief that technology is now inseparable from the most profound questions related to human experience and human flourishing. How we design our technologies must take into account our understanding of what it means to be human."

Vanderbilt recently moved to expand into New York City and West Palm Beach. San Francisco marks the newest addition to its portfolio of campuses outside of its home state of Tennessee.

The new campus will take over the spaces currently being used by the California College of the Arts in the Showplace Square neighborhood of San Francisco, adjacent to Mission Bay. The school announced last year it would wind down operations because of financial difficulties.

California College of the Arts board chair Calvin Wheeler expressed sorrow for the school's closure in a press release, but optimism after talks with Vanderbilt.

"On behalf of CCA's Board of Trustees, I want to acknowledge both the challenge of this moment, as well as the opportunity," Wheeler said. "For nearly 120 years, CCA has been providing an innovative arts and design education to students from the San Francisco Bay Area, across California and around the world. At the same time, given our financial challenges, we recognize that this agreement with Vanderbilt is the best opportunity to carry forward this legacy, and we are grateful to Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Mayor Daniel Lurie for supporting our work during this time."

Vanderbilt said it would honor the legacy of the college by establishing the new California College of the Arts Institute at Vanderbilt, a center officials said will expand the university's visual arts offerings for students.

News of the expansion excited District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey, who represents the area where the campus will be located.

"This is really ambitious, and I think people really need to understand that this is a world-class institution that is making a long-term investment in San Francisco and the opportunities for synergy here," Dorsey said. "I think this is just incredibly important to the future of San Francisco, future of our economy and the neighborhood that is going to benefit from it in the Showplace Square and Design District area."

Diermeier said he would not disclose how much money was involved in the agreement, but said the university worked extensively to make a long-term financial plan that would ensure the new school's presence in the city for decades.

Plans are still being finalized for course offerings, while Vanderbilt searches for staff and faculty for the new campus.

The campus is set to open for the 2027-28 academic year, pending approval from regulatory authorities, for approximately 1,000 undergraduates. Housing formerly used by the California College of the Arts will be used by Vanderbilt after renovations are completed.