Photos by Chuck Kirman / Star staff Roger Andersen, the new president of Brooks Institute, prepares to make a DVD promoting the school. Alumni Blair Madigan, right, and Tracy Trotter, senior faculty in the motion picture department, assist in the production.

As the new president of Brooks Institute, Roger Andersen is working to redefine the school's image, which suffered after a state review two years ago.

Brooks is launching an ad campaign, developed by a public relations firm, that focuses on the school's hands-on experience and small classes. The campaign features a new logo and the slogan "I live it," Andersen said.

"Part of the rebranding is caused by difficulties the school went through," Andersen said. "And part is that we're more than photography, and we want to promote our programs.

"Hopefully, we've learned whatever lessons we needed to."

Brooks Institute, which has about 1,500 students at campuses in Ventura and Santa Barbara, offers programs in professional photography, visual journalism, film and video production, and graphic design.

The private for-profit school is owned by Career Education Corp., which has more than 75 campuses worldwide.

Andersen was named president of Brooks last month after serving as interim president for seven months. He came to the school as vice president of operations in March 2006.

When Andersen was hired, the school had just gone through a rough period in which it was reviewed by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education, which regulates private schools.

That review said the school misrepresented itself to potential students, promising them higher salaries and better jobs than they actually got after graduating.

Brooks challenged the review. In the end, a judge ruled that the group reviewing Brooks was not properly qualified and did not follow state guidelines. Brooks received a five-year license renewal.

Meanwhile, the school has corrected the problems that were identified both in the invalidated report and by students, Andersen said.

At the time, students said they were misled by high-pressure recruiters who told them they would earn much higher salaries than they did. Now recruiters don't make any promises about job prospects or salaries, Andersen said.

Students also complained about out-of-date equipment and poor communication from administrators.

Evan Dunham, who has been at Brooks for 2 1/2 years studying graphic design, is aware of those complaints but also believes school is "a lot of what you put into it."

"There will be problems that come from any school," Dunham said. "I don't feel I was cheated in any way. It hurts me to hear that people were unhappy with their education here."

Tuition at Brooks runs $4,300 a session. The school offers six sessions a year, so a year of tuition is $25,800. Students can earn their bachelor's degree in three years.

Andersen comes to Brooks with a background in both academia and business — a combination he said he believes is critical in leading a college or university these days.

"Whether it's a public or private school, you have to be a strong academic leader," Andersen said. "You also have to be a pretty astute business leader. You need to be in both worlds."

Before coming to Brooks, Andersen served as president of Adirondack Community College, DeVry Institute of Technology and Hamilton College in Omaha.

He also was regional vice president of operations for Kaplan Higher Education Corp.

And he's a runner who's done the San Francisco Marathon five times.

"It's a positive addiction," he said. "It's really goal setting."