First ROTC student graduates from SCAD

Photo by Wayne C. Moore
Savannah College of Art and Design student Emerson Slack (right), who received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree June 3, was commissioned as a second lieutenant June 1 after completing the Army’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program at SCAD.

By: Angela Ashley

Published: Friday, June 16, 2006

Emerson Slack set a new precedent for Savannah College of Art and Design students when he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army National Guard June 1 at the May Poetter Gallery in Poetter Hall.

“We are making history at SCAD with our first Reserve Officers’ Training Corps graduate,” said Pamela Rhame, senior vice president for recruitment and communications. “We also may be making history outside of SCAD; I am not aware of another art and design school offering students the opportunity to participate in the ROTC program.”

Slack, who completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in architecture this spring and plans to a complete Master of Architecture degree in Spring 2007, was commissioned by Col. James E. Handley, U.S. Army reserve and assistant professor of military science at Armstrong Atlantic State University. Slack entered SCAD in 2002 as a National Guard reservist and joined the ROTC program in 2004.

As a commissioned officer, Slack will utilize his new degree in the Corps of Engineers. He is part of a National Guard unit in South Carolina that requires him to participate in training and exercises once a month.

“Participating in the National Guard and the ROTC program greatly benefits me,” he said. “I have the added value of leadership skills training and work experience to complement my degree.”

As a SCAD student, Slack has participated in the American Institute of Architecture Students, the and Archi-Pet-Ture fundraising project, and volunteered to help victims of Hurricane Katrina during the SCAD-sponsored Alternative Spring Break trip to Biloxi, Miss.

“I knew I wanted to attend SCAD to study architecture because of SCAD’s reputation as one of the few schools that focuses on the design side of architecture along with the technical aspects of the profession, such as sustainability and function,” he said.

Slack said he is looking forward to his final year of the M.Arch. program and is considering doing his thesis project on the sustainable design of a restaurant and hotel complex on Tybee Island.

Lt. Col. William T. Gillespie Jr., Savannah regional senior ROTC program director, and Handley led the commissioning ceremony.

“We have received tremendous support from SCAD administration,” said Gillespie. “This is a milestone for SCAD and for the Eagle ROTC Battalion to have our first graduate this year. We are looking forward to seeing the other five current ROTC students graduate from SCAD, and we are very excited that three freshmen will be entering the program through SCAD this fall.”


Ashley is director of admission communications.