Cornish College of the Arts began in 1914 as the Cornish School of Music, founded by Nellie Cornish in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. Within a few years, it became The Cornish School, expanding its reach beyond music and into dance, theater and visual arts. In 1955, the institution transitioned into the Cornish School of Allied Arts, reflecting its growing reputation as a hub for creative education. Following the college’s accreditation, it was briefly named the Cornish Institute until it was chartered as Cornish College of the Arts in 1986. In 2003, the campus was established in South Lake Union. In 2025, the college transitioned to Cornish College of the Arts at Seattle University.
The school offers the following areas of study: animation, art, dance, design, film and media, game art, illustration, music, photography, and theatre.