SCAD celebrates the Class of 2022 with acclaimed actor, producer, and director Amy Poehler, host Daniel Thrasher, and honorees David Yurman and Tricky Stewart

SAVANNAH, Ga., June 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Savannah College of Art and Design celebrates the Class of 2022, the university's largest graduating class, with digital and in-person events Friday, June 3, and Saturday, June 4. Presented online, the Presidential Conferment of Degrees begins 9 a.m. ET, Friday, June 3, for all SCAD locations, uniting graduates, students, and audiences from around the world. Following the morning's ceremony, in-person Presentations of Degrees with esteemed faculty will take place in Savannah and Atlanta through Saturday, June 4, as graduates command the stage.

"The Class of 2022 will carry SCAD in their hearts wherever they go, into every boardroom, every brand they build, and every atelier and studio they launch," said SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace. "SCAD Bees make the world more beautiful. Together, we strengthen our communities and uplift our neighbors. These talented Bees may be graduating, but they never leave SCAD. They are SCAD. And they shine our love and light in everything they create for others."

The high-energy, digital conferment of degrees ceremony will be emceed by entertainer, actor, composer, YouTube sensation, and SCAD alum Daniel Thrasher (B.F.A., performing arts, 2015).

President Wallace will confer degrees and present two honorary degrees to visionary artists David Yurman and Tricky Stewart. Yurman is a jewelry designer and sculptor with a lifelong love for design an innovation. With his wife and co-founder, Sybil, Yurman created America's foremost luxury jewelry brand, David Yurman. Stewart is a multi-Grammy Award-winning songwriter, producer, and composer. In a career spanning more than three decades, Stewart's profound respect and appreciation for music has been the guiding force in more than 50 million records sold.

Acclaimed actor, writer, director, producer, and bestselling author Amy Poehler will deliver the commencement address to more than 3,200 graduates during the virtual ceremony. Poehler made her documentary directorial debut with Amazon's critically acclaimed documentary Lucy & Desi, which she executive produced through her production company Paper Kite Productions. She also executive produces Netflix's Emmy-Award winning series Russian Doll, Amazon's Harlem, NBC's Making It, which she co-hosts alongside Nick Offerman, Peacock's Baking It, and Fox's Duncanville, which she co-created and voices two characters. Her acting credits include Parks and Recreation, Saturday Night Live, Inside Out, and Mean Girls, among others.

Other programming includes remarks by SCAD alumni Erika Bazo (B.F.A., industrial design, 2014; B.F.A., service design, 2014) and Daniel Freyermuth (B.F.A., industrial design, 2012). The couple met at SCAD and have since led innovation and change in their respective creative careers. Bazo is a senior user experience manager at multinational financial services firm Charles Schwab. Freyermuth serves as the product strategy and development director for Flarespace, a Storyteller Overland subsidiary and adventure van parts manufacturer supporting RV manufacturers and the DIY community. Their remarks will encourage the new graduates to "live free, explore endlessly, and tell better stories."

The HoneyBees, SCAD's elite performance ensemble, will also be featured, along with a compilation video of the university's 2022 Outstanding Graduates from both the SCAD Savannah and Atlanta locations, and a special highlight reel dedicated to the Class of 2022. Outstanding graduates represent an array of the university's top-ranked degree programs including business of beauty and fragrance, interactive design and game development, industrial design, interior design, performing arts, visual effects, and user experience (UX) design.

The digital event will be livestreamed via YouTube with a link to the live broadcast at scad.edu/commencement, giving at-home viewers a front-row seat to the show.

Following the morning ceremony, the Presentation of Degrees ceremonies will take place as in-person events at the Savannah Convention Center and the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. Savannah graduates will participate in the ceremony designated for their school on either Friday, June 3, or Saturday, June 4. For friends and loved ones who are unable to attend in person, all Presentation of Degrees ceremonies will also be streamed live online via scad.edu/commencement.

SCAD Outstanding Graduates 2022

Atlanta:
Valedictorian:
Jabria Oliver
B.F.A. industrial design
Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Salutatorian:
Akebalan Etzioni
B.F.A. interactive design and game development
Tuskegee, Alabama

Excelsus Laureate:
You Li
M.F.A. interior design
Handan, China

Savannah:
Valedictorian:
Hannah Harris
B.F.A. business of beauty and fragrance
Coconut Creek, Florida

Salutatorian:
Andrew Goodridge
B.F.A. user experience (UX) design
West Chester, Pennsylvania

Excelsus Laureate:
Felipe Amaya Quintero
M.F.A. visual effects
Bogotá, Colombia

SCAD: THE UNIVERSITY FOR CREATIVE CAREERS
SCAD is a private, nonprofit, accredited university, offering more than 100 graduate and undergraduate degree programs across locations in Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia; Lacoste, France; and online via SCADnow. For more information, visit scad.edu.

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SOURCE Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD)