SCAD feedback

Colleges and Universities A-Z Savannah College of Art and Design
81

<p>She is very wary of any school that isn't very safe; thus, big city schools are a "no-no" for her.//</p>

<p>Well, I hate to tell you this, but I experienced crime at RIT; over $1000 of camera equipment was stolen out of my car. My vehicle was also hit and run in the parking lot by the dorms.</p>

<p>Granted RITs campus is much more isolated as it is not integrated into the city itself, but there is no reason to think that crime does not exist at RIT, in Rochester, or any other school or city. Students should always practice caution.</p>

82

<p>Isn't Rochester the #1 murder capitol of the world by population density or something?</p>

83

<p>Ok, I was wrong, but not that wrong:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.cityrating.com/citycrime.asp?city=Rochester&state=NY%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.cityrating.com/citycrime.asp?city=Rochester&state=NY&lt;/a> .. Murder Per Capita is 3.49 times the national average, and Arson (?!) is 4.94 times the national average. </p>

<p>FWIW, Baltimore's murder rate is 5.48 times the national average, and Savannah's is 2.82 ..</p>

84

<p>I have a friend going to RIT and he recently told me about a "ninja" problem they had there. Over Halloween people dressed as ninjas were going around and mugging people. </p>

<p>As for SCAD, it looks like a great trade school to me. If one is looking to go straight into a careertrack, I say SCAD looks wonderful. It seems to have many varied and interesting majors, and the general ed looks helpful. The only thing I would be concerned about is the lack of selectivity. However, sometimes that doesn't mean anything. So I say if you have visited and researched extensively, like it, and find ypurself defending it in this debate, then go there. More power to ya for following your own path and ignoring the negativity of others.</p>

85

<p>Okay, I have been reading this thread off and on for some time and can no longer keep quiet.</p>

<p>First some background:
1-I have been to Savannah AND SCAD numerous times, over the last eight years
2-I have acquaintances that have been on the faculty at SCAD
3-I have two colleagues who are recognized "authorities" on different aspects of Savannah [you are just going to have to take my word for it, I do not have permission to "out" them here, lets just say someone thinks enough of their knowledge to publish them and they make a living off of their expertise]
4-I have done my own, extensive research on both Savannah and SCAD, prior to ever hearing of CC or this thread, for a professional project
5-I have several relatives and very close friends who are professors [all are PhDs in their fields of education and have taught/are teaching at universities around the country] </p>

<p>My thoughts/comments:
1-FACT: Savannah is the oldest city in Georgia. It was the first city in the COLONY of Georgia. When Sherman burned Georgia from Atlanta to the sea during the civil war, he stopped at Savannah and left it standing. Take any city that is that old and I guarentee you that it has old, dirty, poverty-stricken areas [read:the crime infested portion of a city where the vast majority of every city's crime stats come from]. Huge portions of Savannah include exclusive, million-plus historical homes without security gates or security doormen and there is no slow down in the demand for homes like this, in fact, urban renewal is evermore creeping into blighted areas and drivng what crime neighborhoods there are, out. Furthermore, it is an historical tourist-driven city and while it does not compare in size, think of other tourist focused cities and you will find criminals who breed on tourists [NYC, Vegas, NO, Miami, SF, Providence, etc...]. Despite all that, on one of my trips I escorted 10 six-grade girls on a six day trip to see the birthplace of the Girl Scouts. It is a mega for the GSUSA and on any given day there are literally hundreds of very young girls walking around Savannah. On three nights we were in the historic district [where SCAD is located] until after 10 pm doing tours [ghost walks etc] and NEVER would I have done that if I thought they could possibly be in danger. The crime issue is essentially a non-issue in my opinion, if one uses common sense safety and knows where they can and cannot go as they should in any city of more than 2,000 people.
2-All this accredidation talk got me checking and I found out something very interesting. Over at <a href="http://www.nasad.arts-accredit.org%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.nasad.arts-accredit.org&lt;/a> I discovered that SCAD isn't the only prominant school not accredited, NYU's art schools are not, neither are it's theatre schools/studios. Sure hope no one was considering attending there, better cross it off the list or give it WAY more serious scrutiny. BTW, please don't start a war by going over to the Musical Theatre Major thread and telling all the posters there about this, NYU is the sacred cow there :)
3-The fact that SCAD does not tenure it's professors makes it pretty obvious to me [and I only have a BS degree] why they have turnover, tenure is the goal of 99.9% of professors out there and believe me, once they get it, all bets are off as far as what a school will get out of them. Personally I wish tenure were illegal, do a good job, keep improving and you will keep your job. Conversely, schools that do tenure, why would a professor ever leave creating an opening??? That issue gives me no pause at all. Furthermore, the faculty I know from SCAD have left, and it was to take positions at universities where they had a chance of tenure. While it has been a loss for SCAD, it also gives opportunity for new ideas. I would be concerned if an institution based so heavily on new and creative ideas was full of professors who hadn't left the institution for 10-20 years+.
4-The rapid growth which Rainingagain states is mind-blowing in an era where colleges are jockeying for students, especially in a niche narrow focus like an art school. Seems like common sense that they would be advertising to fill new needs created by explosive growth.
5-Savannah is a magical, artsy, mysterious, architecturally significant, historical city[and that is just the people-kidding-but the people are fascinating too]. One of the main reasons I return there often as I can is the creativity that is stimulated when I am there. The city embraces and has a love affair with SCAD. This is one of the main things many students look for in a learning environment.
6-Having been involved with several companies that have been on the receiving end of misleading and out-right false representations on the internet, I consider any website that is authored by a fired employee or the spouse of a fired employee, nothing but hi-tech gossip. When the anti-SCAD site was up, I looked at what was there, followed all the links and what I took away from it was different than what the author intended. As for getting an injunction against the website, that is almost impossible to get and unfortunately if one has the technology in today's world, one can say and do pretty much what they want on their own website. Although I do find it interesting that the site is now supposedly "under construction"...</p>

<p>All that being said [and believe it or not I have been brief], you can all relax. Despite the fact that I would LOVE for my kid to even consider SCAD, alas, she is not [too far from home, located in the south and no snow covered mountain peaks-all facts that I cannot dispute].</p>

<p>Okay so let the personal attacks commence...</p>

86

<p>Thanks for your interesting post. I used to live in Tallahassee and visited Savannah numerous times; it's one of my favorite cities of the old south (Charleston is on my list, too; just 100 mi away). I would consider living in Savannah if they had a top-level university there.</p>

<p>But you have a naive and jaundiced view of the meaning of tenure, as is reflected in this statement: "tenure is the goal of 99.9% of professors out there and believe me, once they get it, all bets are off as far as what a school will get out of them." As someone who has been engaged in university teaching for nearly 30 years, I can say that your statement is far off the mark. A very small percentage of faculty "die on the vine" post-tenure, since there are plenty of incentives to remain productive (e.g., salary increments, individual goals, and indiviedual reputation). But if a school has a badly administered tenure system, one that doesn't truly rely on merit review but only depends on "time served," that's another matter. That kind of system is seldom found at a good college or university.</p>

87

<p>Well what do you know, Taxguy recommends SCAD.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.livejournal.com/community/artschool_faq/12413.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.livejournal.com/community/artschool_faq/12413.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

88

<p>RainingAgain, I recommended it with the stipulation that is wasn't NASAD accredited, and noted that "this lack of accreditation bothered me." I wouldn't call that an unqualified recommendation. LOL</p>

<p>Also understand: I NEVER ,EVER said that SCAD is a bad school in any way. I do understand that they supposedly have some strong programs especially in sequential art.
Maybe it is the best thing since Egg bagels. Maybe the review about SCAD in one of the magazines about it becoming the top "Up and coming art school" is correct However, with the lack of NASAD accreditation and rumors of bad crime by the school, these factors should alert prospective students to check SCAD out carefully. .</p>

89

<p>Taxguy, I noticed that MICA was not on your list of recommended schools in the article that rainingagain cited. Your article dealt specifically with graphic design programs, and some schools such as UMass/Dartmouth, Towson, and Purchase were on your list. Does MICA's Graphics program compare unfavorably with them?</p>

<p>Also, in your response to rainingagain, you mention "rumors" of high crime in Savannah. I take it then that you are discrediting the points made by Believersmom further up the thread? How much time have you spent in Savannah?</p>

90

<p>DGB.let me address each point that you raised.</p>

<ol>
<li>As for MICA, In Maryland, MICA has a great reputation for fine arts training and for their combination BFA/MFA in education. However, they aren't as well known for graphic design. Their program might be excellent,but ,frankly, I know very little about their graphic design program; thus, I didn't recommend them on the site that RainingAgain noted. Many times I won't recommend something simply because I don't know anything about their program. I don't recommend Yale for the same reasons, and they have a very highly rated program in graphic arts according to US News and World Reports. I think people are sometimes reading too much into my posts.</li>
</ol>

<p>2.As for crime by SCAD: I personally havn't been mugged nor have I been to the SCAD campus. The crime "rumors," however, have come from actual SCAD students.</p>

<p>One student noted for example noted on the students review web site:</p>

<p>Perceived Campus Safety: Oh boy, here's the doozy. It goes back and forth on this subject: some people say Savannah is terrible; some say it's not that bad. It really depends on where you are. Yes, it's not that bad, but for a city of its size (100,000 in the city of Savannah, around 300,000 in Chatham County) it is pretty bad. I stayed in an apartment by the ghettos my first year, and there were roaches, gang shootings, and constant screaming matches. But I learned, and got an apartment out on Whitmarsh Island, which is about a 20-30 minute drive (depending on traffic) and it was so nice out there we could leave our apartment unlocked. And best of all, when we had three people in the apartment, it was actually cheaper than the ghettos. It is important to know where to walk in downtown Savannah, and when. Obviously, don't go out after dark, and if you have to, drive, and if you have to walk, walk in groups. The school provides a personal security escort after dark, but it is sorely underutilized. The SCAD busses are also a great asset, especially when there's a group of students in front of a building with a security guard at the entrance. Most of the violent crimes happened after dark, when students were walking alone. Yes, there are a sizable number of such gunpoint muggings that happened in otherwise "safe" areas of the city with groups of four or five students. Yes, there was even a young woman who was kidnapped at 2 in the afternoon from a SCAD parking lot, and raped. I'm not sure that any other schools in large cities have much better records though. On the upside, if you have classes at Montgomery Hall (where 95% of the computer art classes are currently held), you get to park in a nice gated parking lot, the largest other than the dorm lots, with at least two security guards posted at night, and at least three after dark, including one at the parking lot entrance. Statistically, it is the safest place on campus, but that is also because it is the furthest away from the rest of the campus. You hear a lot of horror stories, but a lot are repeated, and among 7000+ students, it's actually a very small portion. Overall, it <em>is</em> pretty safe campus. Every now and then, though, something happens and makes it <em>feel</em> much less safe."</p>

<p>To be fair,I should note that this particular student really gave an overall positive review of SCAD. This was not a disgruntled student! The quoted passage was part of his review.</p>

<p>By the way, if you want to check out more quotes by actual students at SCAD, go to: <a href="http://www.studentsreview.com/GA/SCAD_comments.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.studentsreview.com/GA/SCAD_comments.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>There are about 36 comments about SCAD, not all of them bad, mentioned in the url that I cited. YOU would have to investigate the school for yourself to see how accurate these comment are. My personal attitute about these comments is take them with a "grain of salt." I look for trends and for things to investigate should I want to check out the school.</p>

91

<p>//rumors of bad crime by the school//</p>

<p>crimes by the school? by the school? what does that mean? the school commits crimes? or do you mean that Savannah has some crime, as in nearby? what do you think of Rochester's crime rate?</p>

<p>Savannah does have crime. I believe there were four murders in the city (I'm not including Chatham county, just the city - where SCAD resides) last year. How many murders in the city of Rochester last year? Please let me know, because I am certain your research was thorough.</p>

92

<p><a href="http://www.studentsreview.com/GA/SCAD_comments.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.studentsreview.com/GA/SCAD_comments.html&lt;/a>
There are about 36 comments about SCAD, not all of them bad//</p>

<p>Not all of them bad? Good lord; the vast majority are very good or better, and yet your choice of words might indicate the "bads" outweigh the "goods" 3 to 1. It is easily the other way around, and perhaps the odds are even much much much better. I didn't count, but overall I'd say there were 8 to 9 overall goods or better per overall negative comment. Sure people throw in a negative here or there in their opinions, like frustration with the bursar, or parking, or some crime, but overall the opinions were that it is an outstanding school.</p>

<p>You ought to be ashamed of yourself TG. Fortunately you did kindly provide a link and people can make up their minds themselves.</p>

93

<p>SCAD News</p>

<p>A collection of African-American art estimated to be worth as much as $10 million will be donated to the Savannah College of Art and Design.
<a href="http://www.savannahnow.com/stories/010506/3539693.shtml%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.savannahnow.com/stories/010506/3539693.shtml&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>I wonder why? Why would someone donate a worthy collection to a non NASAD accredited school? It just doesn't seem right.</p>

94

<p>SCAD has a fairly strong and active photo department. It's more on the "art" side of the spectrum (as opposed to commercial). But its faculty is amazing... Craig Stevens is a well known photographer in the New England area as well as France. He holds workshops at both places almost every year I believe. And then you have to look at Tom Fischer, former assistant to Ansel Adams. You can't go wrong learning the Zone System from that guy. Also gook a class from Steven Bliss in color photography... awesome color photo guy with lots to learn from.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.livejournal.com/community/artschool_faq/11909.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.livejournal.com/community/artschool_faq/11909.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Yeah, learning how to print black and white photography or use the Zone system from Ansel Adam's assistant is pretty useless next to going to an NASAD accredited school. They know better there I'm sure because they are accredited by the NASAD and not SACS. That's all that counts.</p>

95

<p>In 2004, there were 0 forcible sex offenses reported on campus properties at SCAD. In fact, from 2002 to 2004, there were 0 total.</p>

<p>From 2002 to 2004, there were 24 reports of forcible sex offences at RIT, on campus.</p>

96

<p>On this board I am seeing a large number of just flat-out untrue statements about SCAD. Also, I do not work for SCAD nor do I have any relatives who go to school there. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>SCAD is a non-profit institution, it has never been a for-profit school.</p></li>
<li><p>Look at who else in not accredited by NASAD. (NYU film school, UCLA film school, USC film school, Yale art history, etc.) Many of the top ranked programs in the world do not care about NASAD. The main people who talk them up are the schools that are members.</p></li>
<li><p>If you want to judge the quality of a school look at where their students are employed. Each year some of the top firms from computer art, animation, fashion, advertising, game development, etc. all come to SCAD to recruit. If these companies believe in the work of the graduates then something must be right. </p></li>
<li><p>There is crime in every city of America, most kids know where they should be and where they shouldn’t be. Take a look at the crime statistics for the school (they are all available online) before you judge a rumor about a city. </p></li>
<li><p>As for faculty turnover, published statistics from SCAD show that over 90% of employees are retained each year. So the large number of postings is their growth not people leaving. I have known a number of people who worked at SCAD in the past and the major reason they left was because they didn’t like Savannah or they were use to other universities where the faculty control the institution.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>What is odd to me is that there are a select few people who consistently post on this board with negative information. It makes me wonder about their intentions.</p>

97

<p>The vast majority of the negativity has subsided. You’ll find most of the posts attempting to discredit SCAD, posting misinformation, or questioning the quality of the education it provides to its students are from two-three years ago. Those voices have died down because others have weighed in with facts, and posted opinions supportive of the school.</p>

98

<p>You seem to be looking at art academic schools. Has your daughter considered RISD? You can apply to both Brown and RISD and get a joint degree. Considering her high gpa, there is a chance she could be accepted to both. RISD has great none fine art departments, for instance their Illustration program is considered to be one of the best.</p>

<p>I’m not sure if RISD is too big, but it doesn’t have a large student body field and offers a large variety of sports. I’m not sure if swimming is one of them [RISD</a> : Rhode Island School of Design](<a href=“http://www.risd.edu%5DRISD”>http://www.risd.edu) should offer all of the details.</p>

<p>I noticed that someone mentioned RIT, they have a great technical arts and sciences there and is definitely one to consider.</p>

<p>As far as SCAD goes, I was nearly tempted myself. The two things that put me off (other than the heat!) 1. You might be tired of reading this but… It’s not an accredited school. 2. cost was as issue for me, so naturally scholarships are a must. I have friends who have attended SCAD, they were given amazing scholarships for freshmen year, but had them revoked for their following years. After asking around, this is common practice. Lure you in and leave you to hanging?</p>

99

<p>/// As far as SCAD goes, I was nearly tempted myself. The two things that put me off (other than the heat!) 1. You might be tired of reading this but… It’s not an accredited school. ///</p>

<p>You are incorrect. SCAD is accredited by SACS. Notable colleges such as William and Mary and Georgia Tech are accredited by SACS. </p>

<p>//// 2. cost was as issue for me, so naturally scholarships are a must. I have friends who have attended SCAD, they were given amazing scholarships for freshmen year, but had them revoked for their following years. After asking around, this is common practice. Lure you in and leave you to hanging ////</p>

<p>If you don’t make the grades, scholarships are revoked. Seems fair to me. Student’s “hang” themselves.</p>

100

<p>My D has been accepted to RISD, Pratt, AIB, SCAD, MICA, and Mass Art.
RISD gave no money and for technical reasons, she got no money from Mass Art.
She has generous scholarships to AIB, Pratt, SCAD and MICA. She doesn’t want AIB and Pratt and RISD are still too expensive. So we are down to MICA and SCAD. My D has a 4.0 gpa and a strong portfolio and was a 4 year varsity letter athlete. My point is she is well-rounded and motivated. Any advice is appreciated. She wants to major in painting.</p>