Agreed. My 4 year program started with a foundation year of art and architectural history, color theory, 2d theory, 3D theory, and figure drawing. The full year. Looking back on it the first year was the most important year for me personally. It shaped me as a designer and all of the art history gave me a lot of context, studying various art, architecture, and design movements and the geopolitical forces that shaped them.
Every school is different of course, and every person is different. I found it super valuable and of course I look for that base level of knowledge in the people I work with.