The architectural history department was established at the Savannah College of Art and Design in 1995 in response to the growing number of professional opportunities within the field, particularly outside of academia. Robin Williams, Ph.D., then a professor of art history at SCAD, was appointed chair (a position he has held ever since) and oversaw the hiring of faculty, the creation of degree programs and the expansion of curriculum. Karl Schuler, Ph.D., and David Gobel, Ph.D., were first to join the department in Fall 1996; Daves Rossell, Ph.D., in Fall 1997; Thomas Gensheimer, Ph.D., in Winter 2000; and Celeste Guichard, Ph.D., in Fall 2004. Professor Jeff Eley, a veteran of the art history department prior to 1995, joined the department's faculty in Fall 2005 after serving more than 10 years in various administrative positions.
Early on, the department undertook a variety of initiatives that have proven very influential on the growth of the programs. The Savannah Symposium, conceived in 1997 and inaugurated in February 1999, quickly put the department on the map by attracting scholars and professionals from around the world to participate in this biennial event. The first symposium, focusing on "The City Square," received the first outside humanities grants ever awarded to SCAD — from the Georgia Humanities Council and the Samuel Kress Foundation. Addressing a different theme every two years — "Authenticity in Architecture" (2001), "Commemoration and the City" (2003), "Architecture and Regionalism" (2005) and "Building in the Public Realm" (2007) — the series has become an established event in the calendar of architectural history conferences. Another early initiative, the Survey of Non-Academic Career Opportunities in Architectural History, was begun in 1997 by Schuler to clarify the nature and range of career paths available within this field. His ongoing research and compilation of data, updated semi-annually, has greatly informed curriculum development and served as a valuable resource for students both at SCAD and at other institutions. Based on listings for full-time positions in which architectural history is listed as one of the desired degrees, the survey identifies five principal types of positions along with their responsibilities and expected skills, calculates regional distributions of positions and summarizes typical salary ranges. On average, more than 200 full-time positions in architectural history outside of academia are advertised annually.
The Virtual Historic Savannah Project, conceived in 1997 by Williams, who has since served as its director, aims to bridge traditional architectural history research and computer database and visualization technology through a collaboration with the college’s interactive design and game development department. Documenting the evolution of downtown Savannah, the online project has provided scores of students with valuable practical experience at a wide array of tasks. The project was the recipient in 2000 of the first major research grants awarded to SCAD — a pair of planning grants, $9,766 from the Georgia Humanities Council and $50,200 from the National Endowment for the Humanities. In 2002, it received a $150,000 implementation grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The project has become a valuable and innovative resource of data about the city’s architectural heritage and will soon be the subject of an entry in the New Georgia Encyclopedia.
The rapid establishment of the department’s reputation and success of the Savannah Symposium series led to the opportunity to host outside professional organizations, beginning in October 2003 with the annual meeting, co-chaired by Gobel and Williams, of the Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (SESAH) — a regional chapter of the national organization. In April 2006, Williams served as local chair for the 59th annual meeting of the national Society of Architectural Historians held in Savannah. Rossell now serves as organizer for 2007 annual meeting in Savannah of the Vernacular Architecture Forum, the other national society of architectural historians. This meeting, for which he is the local chair, will take place March 28–31, 2007. SCAD architectural history faculty have played an increasingly active role in professional societies, as well as regional and local heritage organizations. Gobel is president of the Southeast Society of Architectural Historians, and Rossell serves on its board. Gobel and Rossell also served as editors of Arris, the annual architectural journal published by SESAH, from 2000–03. Rossell is past president of the Vernacular Georgia Association, Schuler is vice-president of the Coastal Georgia Archeological Society and Williams is a member of the Founders’ Award committee of the Society of Architectural Historians. Williams and Rossell both served as the architectural historian member of the Georgia National Register Review Board from 1999–2002 and 2002–06, respectively. Eley serves on the board in this capacity until 2010. Williams also served on the Historic District Ordinance Revision Committee for the Metropolitan Planning Commission of the city of Savannah, 2001–04, and is a member of the Consulting Committee, Owens-Thomas House Slave Quarters Interpretation project. In Fall 2006, Rossell was appointed to the Chatham County Historic Preservation Commission, which he chairs. Since the graduation of the department's first student in 1999 (Laura Lee Fisher, M.F.A.) architectural history alumni have successfully secured positions around the country and abroad.
Undergraduates have gone on to graduate programs in such fields as city planning, American studies and historic preservation at such schools as George Washington University, the Pratt Institute, the College of William and Mary, and Georgia Institute of Technology. Graduate students occupy positions around the country as architectural historians at state preservation offices and local heritage organizations, in several main street programs, at historic sites and museums, and as private consultants. Two international alumni are successfully pursuing careers in architectural history in their native lands — one as a researcher for a conservation firm in Mumbai (Bombay), India, the other as an instructor of architectural history in Seoul, South Korea. In 2002, Marc Belanger (M.F.A.) was selected as the top graduate student at SCAD and was named Excelsus Laureate. The Friends of Architectural History student club has steadily grown to provide students, including some students in other majors, with opportunities to explore common interests in a variety of social settings. Quarterly potluck dinners organized by the students have become a defining event that brings faculty and students together, while periodic outings and special tours explore destinations not normally addressed in classes.
Recently, the department's students have received notable accolades from the institution: Nathaniel Walker (M.A. 2006) received the 2006 Outstanding Thesis Award, Marisa Gomez (B.F.A. 2007) was selected as the 2007 SCAD Valedictorian and Diane Galt (M.A. 2004) is being awarded the 2008 Most Promising Alumni Award. In January 2008, M.A. candidate Jennifer Adams was the first student in the program to a publish a journal article. Adams' article appears in the 2007 volume of ARRIS, the journal of the Southeast Chapter of Society of Architectural Historians.
Early on, the department undertook a variety of initiatives that have proven very influential on the growth of the programs. The Savannah Symposium, conceived in 1997 and inaugurated in February 1999, quickly put the department on the map by attracting scholars and professionals from around the world to participate in this biennial event. The first symposium, focusing on "The City Square," received the first outside humanities grants ever awarded to SCAD — from the Georgia Humanities Council and the Samuel Kress Foundation. Addressing a different theme every two years — "Authenticity in Architecture" (2001), "Commemoration and the City" (2003), "Architecture and Regionalism" (2005) and "Building in the Public Realm" (2007) — the series has become an established event in the calendar of architectural history conferences. Another early initiative, the Survey of Non-Academic Career Opportunities in Architectural History, was begun in 1997 by Schuler to clarify the nature and range of career paths available within this field. His ongoing research and compilation of data, updated semi-annually, has greatly informed curriculum development and served as a valuable resource for students both at SCAD and at other institutions. Based on listings for full-time positions in which architectural history is listed as one of the desired degrees, the survey identifies five principal types of positions along with their responsibilities and expected skills, calculates regional distributions of positions and summarizes typical salary ranges. On average, more than 200 full-time positions in architectural history outside of academia are advertised annually.The Virtual Historic Savannah Project, conceived in 1997 by Williams, who has since served as its director, aims to bridge traditional architectural history research and computer database and visualization technology through a collaboration with the college’s interactive design and game development department. Documenting the evolution of downtown Savannah, the online project has provided scores of students with valuable practical experience at a wide array of tasks. The project was the recipient in 2000 of the first major research grants awarded to SCAD — a pair of planning grants, $9,766 from the Georgia Humanities Council and $50,200 from the National Endowment for the Humanities. In 2002, it received a $150,000 implementation grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The project has become a valuable and innovative resource of data about the city’s architectural heritage and will soon be the subject of an entry in the New Georgia Encyclopedia.The rapid establishment of the department’s reputation and success of the Savannah Symposium series led to the opportunity to host outside professional organizations, beginning in October 2003 with the annual meeting, co-chaired by Gobel and Williams, of the Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (SESAH) — a regional chapter of the national organization. In April 2006, Williams served as local chair for the 59th annual meeting of the national Society of Architectural Historians held in Savannah. Rossell now serves as organizer for 2007 annual meeting in Savannah of the Vernacular Architecture Forum, the other national society of architectural historians. This meeting, for which he is the local chair, will take place March 28–31, 2007. SCAD architectural history faculty have played an increasingly active role in professional societies, as well as regional and local heritage organizations. Gobel is president of the Southeast Society of Architectural Historians, and Rossell serves on its board. Gobel and Rossell also served as editors of Arris, the annual architectural journal published by SESAH, from 2000–03. Rossell is past president of the Vernacular Georgia Association, Schuler is vice-president of the Coastal Georgia Archeological Society and Williams is a member of the Founders’ Award committee of the Society of Architectural Historians. Williams and Rossell both served as the architectural historian member of the Georgia National Register Review Board from 1999–2002 and 2002–06, respectively. Eley serves on the board in this capacity until 2010. Williams also served on the Historic District Ordinance Revision Committee for the Metropolitan Planning Commission of the city of Savannah, 2001–04, and is a member of the Consulting Committee, Owens-Thomas House Slave Quarters Interpretation project. In Fall 2006, Rossell was appointed to the Chatham County Historic Preservation Commission, which he chairs. Since the graduation of the department's first student in 1999 (Laura Lee Fisher, M.F.A.) architectural history alumni have successfully secured positions around the country and abroad.
Undergraduates have gone on to graduate programs in such fields as city planning, American studies and historic preservation at such schools as George Washington University, the Pratt Institute, the College of William and Mary, and Georgia Institute of Technology. Graduate students occupy positions around the country as architectural historians at state preservation offices and local heritage organizations, in several main street programs, at historic sites and museums, and as private consultants. Two international alumni are successfully pursuing careers in architectural history in their native lands — one as a researcher for a conservation firm in Mumbai (Bombay), India, the other as an instructor of architectural history in Seoul, South Korea. In 2002, Marc Belanger (M.F.A.) was selected as the top graduate student at SCAD and was named Excelsus Laureate. The Friends of Architectural History student club has steadily grown to provide students, including some students in other majors, with opportunities to explore common interests in a variety of social settings. Quarterly potluck dinners organized by the students have become a defining event that brings faculty and students together, while periodic outings and special tours explore destinations not normally addressed in classes.
Recently, the department's students have received notable accolades from the institution: Nathaniel Walker (M.A. 2006) received the 2006 Outstanding Thesis Award, Marisa Gomez (B.F.A. 2007) was selected as the 2007 SCAD Valedictorian and Diane Galt (M.A. 2004) is being awarded the 2008 Most Promising Alumni Award. In January 2008, M.A. candidate Jennifer Adams was the first student in the program to a publish a journal article. Adams' article appears in the 2007 volume of ARRIS, the journal of the Southeast Chapter of Society of Architectural Historians.