Wallace was presented with the Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres insignia in a special ceremony held Wednesday, February 11, 2026, at Villa Albertine headquarters in New York City.
Mohamed Bouabdallah, Cultural Counselor of France in the U.S. and Director of Villa Albertine said: "On behalf of the French Republic and French Ministry of Culture, I extend my warmest congratulations to Paula Wallace on her investiture as Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Through her visionary leadership and enduring dedication to creative education, historic preservation, and cultural exchange, Paula Wallace has made a lasting contribution to France's cultural landscape. We are proud to recognize her as a distinguished steward of the arts and an essential partner in strengthening the cultural dialogue between France and the United States."
Established by the Ministry of France in 1957, the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is France's highest recognition of cultural influence and artistic excellence. This prestigious distinction of knighthood conferred by the French government signifies the recipient's role in fostering artistic distinction and cultural exchange in France and internationally.
"I am profoundly honored to receive this knighthood from the Republic of France, which honors the success of every SCAD student and graduate who's studied at SCAD Lacoste for more than a generation, as well as the many SCAD 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," said Wallace. "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."
A lifelong teacher and champion of professional creative education, Wallace founded SCAD in 1978. The university is now revered worldwide as the preeminent university for art, design, and entrepreneurship, with global locations in Savannah and Atlanta, Georgia; Lacoste, France; and online through SCADnow, offering 100 elite degree programs across disciplines—from architecture and applied AI to fashion, film, and beyond.
SCAD enrolls more than 18,500 undergraduate and graduate students from 100+ countries and enjoys an elite alumni network of more than 55,000 design leaders who lead some of the world's best brands from Apple to NASA to hundreds of other Fortune 500 brands, and run their own studios, firms, companies, and labels.
Wallace's visionary leadership and future-forward commitment to academic and professional innovation have led SCAD to receive some of higher education's top global accolades, including being ranked as the No. 1 design university in the Americas and Europe by the internationally acclaimed Red Dot Design Ranking and No. 1 on Art & Object's Best Art Schools in the U.S.
As a founder and leader of SCAD for nearly 50 years and president for more than 25 years, Wallace's impact abroad is most notably realized at SCAD Lacoste, a medieval village in the heart of France's majestic Luberon Valley, once home to the revolutionary Marquis de Sade and an idyllic destination that has been inspiring creative visionaries for centuries. Wallace has played a transformative role in revitalizing the village of Lacoste since the site was donated to SCAD in 2002. The university, heralded globally for excellence in historic preservation and adaptive reuse, has restored more than 50 historic buildings—ranging from medieval caves to former dwellings and archaeologically significant sites—thoughtfully reimagining them as contemporary academic spaces equipped with advanced libraries, studios, lecture halls, galleries, theaters, and student residences.
SCAD Lacoste has since become the arts and culture epicenter in Provence's Luberon Valley welcoming over 30,000 students and visitors annually to experience the location's dynamic art experiences – honoring bastions of French culture such as Christian Dior, Jean Paul Gaultier, Christian Lacroix – and contributing tens of millions of Euros annually to the local economy.
Wallace's heroic efforts to cultivate SCAD Lacoste into an international center of study and center for artistic enlightenment have been supremely rewarded and recognized by the French government. In 2022, Wallace received the Medal of the State of Vaucluse in Provence, and in 2005, was appointed Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques, one of the French Republic's oldest and most prestigious honors awarded for distinguished service in education and culture. In 2025, she was a recipient of the Presidential Citizens Medal, the second-highest civilian award in the United States, recognizing individuals who have performed exemplary deeds of service for their country and fellow citizens.
Wallace led the creation and establishment of four teaching museums on two continents, including SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film (Atlanta), the AIA Award-winning SCAD Museum of Art (Savannah), SCAD FASH Lacoste (France), and Musée SCAD Lacoste (France), the latter which debuted in 2025 as a living chronicle of the region's history and current manifestation of its vibrant present. Through local artifacts and evocative visual storytelling, the museum honors Lacoste's heritage while illuminating its evolution into a flourishing center for creative study and growth—welcoming thousands of students, artists, designers, and visitors to live, learn, and draw inspiration amid the beauty of the Luberon Valley.
Additionally, Wallace has conceived and launched a portfolio of signature university events to enhance SCAD students' careers while engaging global audiences, including the SCAD Savannah Film Festival, SCAD Lacoste Film Festival, SCAD TVfest, SCAD deFINE ART, SCADstyle, and the internationally renowned SCAD Fashion Show.
SCAD museums have mounted exclusive exhibitions, many the first in the United States, for legendary French haute couture houses such as Jeanne Lanvin, Azzedine Alaïa, Cristóbal Balenciaga, Pierre Cardin, Madame Grès as well as contemporary art exhibitions with Eva Jospin, Raphael Barontini, and Jean-Michel Othoniel. Through signature university programming and academic engagement, Wallace has hosted many of France's leading creative voices across fashion, contemporary art, design, film, and television, creating unparalleled opportunities for SCAD students to learn directly from and be inspired by global cultural leaders, including Marilyn Fitoussi, Jacques Audiard, and Mohamed Bourouissa.
For more information about Paula S. Wallace and the Savannah College of Art and Design, visit SCAD.edu.
SOURCE Savannah College of Art and Design
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