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The French Ministry of Culture has knighted Savannah College of Art and Design founder and President Paula Wallace for efforts to foster cultural exchange and “artistic distinction” in France and abroad.
SCAD, which has campuses in Atlanta and Savannah, also operates a French campus in LaCoste, anchored around Maison Basse, a restored 16th-century farmhouse that now house a SCAD FASH museum and art galleries featuring SCAD student work.
Ms. Wallace was bestowed with the insignia of the Chevalière des Arts et des Lettres during a Feb. 11 ceremony in New York.
Presenting the medal was Mohamed Bouabdallah, cultural counselor for the French embassy in Washington, who is also responsible for the Villa Albertine cultural program that has brought artists, performers, scholars and writers to cities across the U.S. for residencies, including in Atlanta. See 2025 residencies and the program’s upcoming Night of Ideas on March 29
On social media, the Consulate General of France in Atlanta said it has been “proud to collaborate regularly with the university on cultural initiatives that deepen these ties and showcase the very best of French and American creativity.”
In a news release, Ms. Wallace praised SCAD students as well as graduates “who contribute to the cultural and economic life of France as creative professionals working for Hermès, Dior, CHANEL, Ubisoft, Airbus, L’Oréal, UNICEF and so many other global brands.”
Many of those companies have affiliates or subsidiaries in the Southeast U.S., including Airbus, which operates its aerial intelligence unit in Atlanta and a plane factory in Mobile, Ala.
Ms. Wallace also gave a nod to the SCAD campus in Provence, saying in the release that the outpost, donated to SCAD in 2002, inherits a long tradition of artistic and cultural excellence that it helps preserve and pass down to students:
“This recognition affirms the beauty of cultural exchange and the importance of nurturing international higher education. Our world’s most talented and passionate creatives—writers, painters, photographers, sculptors—have long been summoned to the idyllic, inspired hills and villages of Provence to flourish, and SCAD Lacoste has extended that tradition by transforming the entire village of Lacoste into an international destination for art and design, shaping generations of creative leaders yet to come.”
Founded in 1978, SCAD is just two years away from its 50th anniversary. The college is credited with transforming Savannah’s downtown through vibrancy and preservation, and its Atlanta campus has rapidly expanded in recent years, though a Hong Kong campus was closed amid the pandemic in 2020.It counts 18,500 students from 100 countries across all campuses.
The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres was established in 1957 and is France’s “highest recognition of cultural influence and artistic excellence,” according to a release.
Still, Ms. Wallace isn’t completely new to this. More than 20 years ago, she received her first knighthood as a Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes Académiques, a distinguished honor in education and culture. In 2022, Provence awarded her the Medal of the State of Vaucluse.
SCAD was also honored with the French-American Chamber of Commerce’s Crystal Peach Award in 2025.
Along with SCAD, other local higher-learning institutions manage their own French connections, advanced by the French consulate’s science and educational attaches. Georgia Tech is chief among them, having launched the France-Atlanta science and innovation series about 15 years ago. Tech also operates a France campus: Georgia Tech Europe in Metz.
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