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As president and co-founder of the Savannah College of Art and Design, Paula S. Wallace is the chief executive officer of the largest art and design college in the United States. Through her persistent quest for excellence, the college, which began in 1979 with 71 students and a handful of faculty, has grown to include more than 9,000 students and more than 1,100 full-time employees. Her vision to establish an international university devoted to art and design has evolved into an award-winning urban campus in Savannah, off-campus sites in Atlanta and medieval Lacoste, France, and an online distance education program.rnIn addition to her career as an educator, Wallace is an award-winning designer, writer, curator, art collector, and an admired community advocate. Wallace created Working Class studio, an experimental studio developed to help foster entrepreneurial and collaborative efforts among young artists and designers, and Design Press, the college’s book packaging division. Wallace also remains active in historic preservation and design, leading the college to receive numerous awards from such prestigious organizations as the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the American Institute of Architects.rnIn 2004, Wallace was selected for the Principled Leadership Award by Ernst & Young for the Southeast region. She serves as a member of the National Advisory Board to the National Museum of Women in the Arts and was appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue to serve as the education community representative for the Georgia Film, Video and Music Advisory Commission. In 2005, Wallace was honored with the Impact on Design Education award at Style Atlanta, the Southeast’s first fashion and design week. She also was included among the “100 Most Influential Georgians” by Georgia Trend.rnWallace earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Furman University and M.Ed. and Ed.S. degrees from Georgia State University. In 2004, she received an honorary doctor of laws degree from Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash. She is married and is the mother of three children.
