Welcome Home, Bees!
Every year, SCAD welcomes the biggest names in world culture, from Oprah to Picard — and last month, I welcomed the most important and treasured guests that ever enter the door of a SCAD building: our students.
I love the hope and possibility that new Bees bring with them to SCAD, their passion for ambitious dreams, and their vision for creative professions. Some know right away that they’ve come to study animation or film or fashion. Others are considering illustration, but they also think architecture sounds sort of grand, and of course performing arts is something they’ve always loved, not to mention dramatic writing. And on, and on, and on. I tell them it’s okay to be undecided! The spectacular range of SCAD degree programs can blow anyone’s mind. It’s okay to have your mind blown a little. Students have time to soak it all in, to double major, triple minor, and study at all four campuses.
Our SCAD Class of 2018 embodies the kaleidoscopic mix of dreams that came to fruition at SCAD. Jonathan Lau, SCAD Hong Kong’s excelsus laureate, knew that photography was his passion from the start. After a decade in the U.K., he came to SCAD to explore a bolder and more professional approach to photography. In one of his first SCAD projects, he shot photos of Hong Kong buildings he loved — by architects like Zaha Hadid and Daniel Libeskind. He showed his work to a professor, who liked what he saw, but had a suggestion to make the work more meaningful: “You need a story,” the professor told Jonathan, “a reason to shoot.”
That advice stuck with Jonathan throughout his SCAD studies, helping him perfect his technique and learn the art of fusing photography with storytelling. When he returned to his favorite buildings to shoot them again, he did so with purpose, understanding their histories alongside his place as a photographer. Today, he shoots around the city for Sassy Hong Kong, architectural firm Benoy, and the U.S. Consulate.
Like Jonathan, recent SCAD Savannah valedictorian Nicolas Barrera Castañeda knew what his academic pursuit would be. Nicolas always admired architecture, especially as a result of his late mother’s own affections, an artist with an architectural background. In his commencement remarks, Nicolas told the powerful story of how he found his way from Colombia to SCAD and met friends who were (and remain) by his side for every project, every meal, every moment. He worked in the SCAD ambassador and Rising Star programs, and his architecture studies at SCAD led to a career with Sasaki Associates in Boston.
Some of our brightest Bees had dreams that evolved as they discovered new facets of their minds while studying at SCAD. SCAD Savannah excelsus laureate Shannon Vanderhill now works as a UX designer at the 3M Company in Minnesota, a career she discovered through her passion for jewelry. Shannon came to SCAD to study within the nation’s largest jewelry program, discovering a real affinity for thinking about the design process — which led her to study design management at SCAD.
She found that both disciplines are “deeply connected to our needs and aspirations” and demand attention to fine detail. At SCAD, it’s easy to imagine how a jewelry designer falls in love with UX design. Collaborative learning is embedded in academic programs and becomes a pivotal component to initiatives like SCADpro, which Shannon participated in during her time at SCAD.
SCADpro has helped thousands of SCAD student dreams come to life. SCAD Atlanta excelsus laureate Alexandra Badiu received a Buzz Lightyear toy in her Happy Meal after seeing Toy Storyas a young girl, which inspired her to pursue animation. When she came to SCAD, she studied illustration to gain more experience in visual development. She then fell in love with children’s book illustration and became a published illustrator. In the midst of her studies, Alexandra found time to work in animation through SCADpro projects with the Harlem Globetrotters and Adult Swim, contributing her creativity to network IDs that aired on television, like this one.
When I first imagined SCAD, I was still in my twenties, barely older than Jonathan, Nicolas, Shannon, Alexandra, or any of the new SCAD students who just arrived last month. Like each one of them, I had a dream, an impossible thing that seemed within my reach. I was a young schoolteacher, driving my yellow VW Beetle around town (I loved that car!), thinking about what to do with my life. At the time, I was teaching art history and design and drama to elementary school students in Atlanta, Georgia, and I thought, “You know, the world needs a college like this.”
I found the perfect coastal city to build this university and loaded up my little car. Not long afterward, I sold my beloved Beetle to help build SCAD, a home for the world’s most talented students. Forty years later, the memory of that little car represents the spirit of SCAD, where tens of thousands of graduates have since made their dreams come to life. I’ve also had the privilege of creating three more perfect campuses for students in Asia’s World City, a medieval village, and even my childhood hometown.
I like to share this story of the beautiful symmetry between my dream and the dream of every SCAD student. I loaded up my suitcases and made sacrifices and moved my life, just like they have. Our dreams have brought us all here, home. That’s what SCAD is, after all. It’s where our tribe lives!
To all the new SCAD students out there reading this, I wish for you a grand first year. You’re going to make a lot here: screenplays, video games, comic books, new toys, new phones, new friends, memories, a better world, because you’re going to make your career here. It’s your time to shine. Welcome home, Bees!
