[8] In 1952, the Brooks family purchased the former David Gray estate 'Graholm' after the owner at that time, Herschel McGraw, died.

[2][11] In 2013 Brooks announced its consolidation of all its educational programs to the Ventura Campus, and departure from Santa Barbara planned for 2015.

[11][12] From the Cota Street Campus in Santa Barbara, it moved its Professional Photography baccalaureate program in Autumn 2013 and MFA in Photography in Autumn 2014 to its now solo Ventura Campus, where the other baccalaureate programs in Film, Graphic Design, and Visual Journalism were already located.

[13][14][15] In July Gphomestay announced Edward Clift as president, and Victoria Liptak as provost of Brooks.

[3] Before Brooks Institute acquired the Ventura Campus and renovated its buildings for the school, the property was used by 'Hollywood' movie production companies to shoot motion pictures.

Students spent a scholastic session (approximately 2 months) in another country and return to California to edit a multimedia presentation.

The documentary class took students to many countries, including: Ireland, India, Mexico, Cuba, West Africa, Czech Republic, Costa Rica, Australia, Argentina, China and Chile.

[21] Up until the mid-1980s, Brooks Institute was the only national level university program regionally accredited to offer a full Bachelor of Arts degree in photographic sciences, underwritten by WASC.

But because of financial reporting irregularities discovered during its reaccreditation cycle, Brooks lost its standing with WASC and sought accreditation through other oversight bodies.

In August 2008, Brooks Institute successfully completed "Eligibility," the first step to receiving regional accreditation by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

[21][22] This application process takes several years and is not a guarantee that the school will ever receive regional accreditation.

[21] In July 2005, the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education (BPPVE) accused the Brooks Institute of Photography and its then parent corporation Career Education Corporation of persuading prospective students to enroll by "willfully misleading" them, and "falsifying and omitting critical information.

"[23][24][25] Brooks was given only a conditional approval to operate for the next two years with a hearing scheduled for February 2006, and ordered to provide "equitable restitution" to students going back to 1999.