Savannah College of Art and Design

Richard G. Rowan, Paula S. Wallace, May L. Poetter and Paul E. Poetter legally incorporated the Savannah College of Art and Design September 29, 1978. In September 1979, the university first began offering classes with four staff members, seven faculty members, and 71 students. Initially, the school offered eight majors: ceramics, graphic design, historic preservation, textile design, interior design, painting, photography, and printmaking. In May 1981, the first graduate received a degree. The following year, the first graduating class received degrees. In 1982, the enrollment grew to more than 500 students, then to 1,000 in 1986, and 2,000 in 1989. In 2014, the university enrolled more than 11,000 students.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a rash of faculty suicides prompted a nervous reaction from school administrators. The unrest led a competing art school to open downtown, igniting an "all-out war."

Student unrest grew in the early 1990s regarding student representation within the school, culminating in 1992 with the detonation of an explosive device at the administration building, and two more later that year, at the Savannah Civic Center.

SCAD opened a study abroad location in Lacoste, France in 2002 that provides programming for the various academic departments offered by the university's degree-granting locations. It launched an online learning program in 2003 that U.S. News & World Report ranks as among the best for bachelor's programs in the nation. In 2005 the university opened a location in Midtown Atlanta that merged with the Atlanta College of Art in 2006. In September 2010, SCAD opened a Hong Kong location in the Sham Shui Po district.

Richard Rowan (who was married to Paula Wallace at the time) served as president of the college from its inception in 1978 until April 2000, when SCAD's board of trustees promoted him to chancellor. As chancellor, Rowan spent most of his time traveling and recruiting international students and staff. In 2001, he resigned the job and left the college.

Paula S. Wallace is the current president. Wallace, formerly Paula S. Rowan, served as SCAD's provost and dean of academics before becoming president. As president, Wallace directs the internal management of the institution. Wallace has led the collaboration for several annual events, such as the Sidewalk Arts Festival, Savannah Film Festival, a Fashion Show, SCAD Style, deFine Art Festival, Art Educators' Forum and Rising Star. Questions have been raised about the unusual pay packages granted to Wallace and her family. Paula Wallace received $9.6 million in compensation in 2014, and 13 members of her family have received $60 million over the past 20 years.

The university's second museum, SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film, opened in 2015, at SCAD Atlanta.

In 2018, a student started a petition calling for better mental health services for students after two suicides occurred after the beginning of the 2018 academic year. In 2019, SCAD increased the number of professional counseling staff and created Bee Well, which provides virtual and physical counseling, wellness workshops, and a 24/7 toll-free emotional support hotline.

SCAD's efforts to work with the city of Savannah to preserve its architectural heritage include restoring buildings for use as college facilities, for which it has been recognized by the American Institute of Architects, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Historic Savannah Foundation and the Victorian Society of America. The college campus includes 67 buildings throughout the grid-and-park system of downtown Savannah. Many buildings are on the 22 squares of the old town, which are laden with monuments, live oaks and a Southern-Gothic feel.

Located in Atlanta's Midtown, SCAD Atlanta includes classroom and exhibition space, computer labs, library, photography darkrooms, printmaking and sculpture studios, a dining hall, fitness center, swimming pool and residence hall. SCAD Atlanta's Ivy Hall (also known as the Edward C. Peters House) opened in 2008 after extensive restoration. In 2009, SCAD Atlanta opened the Digital Media Center.

The SCAD Lacoste campus is made up of 15th- and 16th-century structures. The campus includes an art gallery, guest houses, computer lab and printmaking lab. In Hong Kong, SCAD occupied the renovated historic North Kowloon Magistracy Building, with more than 80,000 square feet (7,400 m2). It was equipped with classrooms, meeting areas, computer labs, an art gallery and library. The Hong Kong campus was closed in June 2020 after 10 years in the city.

The college's first academic building was the Savannah Volunteer Guards Armory, which was purchased and renovated in 1979. Built in 1892, the Romanesque Revival red brick structure is included on the National Register of Historic Places. Originally named Preston Hall, the building was renamed Poetter Hall in honor of co-founders May and Paul Poetter. SCAD soon expanded rapidly, acquiring buildings in Savannah's downtown historic and Victorian districts, restoring old and often derelict buildings that had exhausted their original functions.

deFINE ART

Founded in 2010, deFINE ART brings leading contemporary artists to Savannah and Atlanta annually in February to present new projects, commissioned works, and new performances. Since 2010, guests have included artists such as Lawrence Weiner, Marilyn Minter, Hank Willis Thomas, Carlos Cruz-Diez, and others.

Controversies

Clarence Thomas Center for Historic Preservation

SCAD has received repeated backlash for naming one of its academic halls after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Thomas was born and raised in Savannah, and served as an altar boy at a convent located at 439 East Broad Street. In 2010, the building was acquired by the school and renamed the Clarence Thomas Center for Historic Preservation, with Thomas attending the dedication. Following the renewed interest of the Anita Hill hearings during Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination, several petitions were formed by SCAD students and alumni demanding the school change the building’s name. Despite one petition receiving over 2,000 signatures, SCAD refused to rename the building. Students also launched a petition to keep Thomas’ name on the building, which received over 18,000 signatures. In 2022, in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade with the decision of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, SCAD once again received backlash for the building’s name. Thomas voted with the majority holding that the U.S. Constitution did not confer a right to abortion, returning to individual states the power to regulate any aspect of abortion not protected by federal law, a decision which sparked protests across the country and in Savannah. Another petition was started by a SCAD student which amassed over 2,000 signatures. Following this renewed backlash, SCAD removed the sign with Thomas’ name from the building, but issued no statement on the matter.

Impact on Savannah

SCAD has had a significant impact on tourism in Savannah. In a report published by SCAD in 2018, the school claimed to have generated over $3 billion for the city and attracted 14.5 million visitors. A similar report by SCAD in 2020 claimed that the school’s Atlanta and Savannah campuses brought in $766.2 million in annual economic impact for the state. Yet many Savannah residents and SCAD students have expressed dissatisfaction with SCAD’s growth, specifically in Savannah. SCAD does not pay property taxes in Savannah, and the continued growth of the school’s facilities has raised property taxes in many of Savannah’s lower-income neighborhoods. In 2023, the first large-scale protest against SCAD’s expansion was held by community members at the SCAD Museum of Art in response to SCAD’s continued displacement of black families in Savannah. The school has issued no comment on the matter.

In 2022, it was reported that SCAD has claimed "nearly $800 million of property out of local tax revenue" while luring luxury developers to further displace local residents.

Racial discrimination claims

Between 2020 and 2022, three fired employees at SCAD claimed racial discrimination in being treated “differently” than white members, in having a "hostile work environment", and retaliation for speaking out. SCAD refuted the claims, responding that "SCAD human resources practices are fair, just, and professional". A lawsuit by one claimant, fired fishing coach Isaac Payne, was dismissed at trial and on appeal. The second claimant, fired English-as-a-Second-Language instructor Shantell Colebrooke, filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) with no decision being reported by her. The third claimant, Director of Giving Darnell Holcomb, was fired because SCAD alleged he did not meet fundraising performance goals. His EEOC claim resulted in a decision in favor of SCAD. Reportedly, the risk of paying significant arbitration costs discouraged him from continuing his discrimination case against SCAD.

Censure of SCAD

SCAD was censured by the American Association of University Professors for issues surrounding academic freedom, tenure, and the dismissal of faculty members. The first censure came in 1993. After working with the AAUP to be removed from the list in 2010, the organization and school came to an impasse and again, in 2012, the AAUP renewed its censure, where it remains as of 2025.