Groundbreaking school holds 1st commencement

Hailed as pioneers on a mission to preserve timber framing, ironwork and other endangered crafts, a small group of students with the American College of the Building Arts received degrees Saturday during the institution's first commencement.

The college's goal is nothing less than to change the way the country "thinks about craftsmen," its president, Colby M. Broadwater, said during the ceremony in Washington Park.

Noting that the school's "path has not always been smooth," Broadwater said the graduates had mastered skills that were in danger of being lost. "You epitomize our goal of producing educated artisans."

Seven students received bachelor's degrees in applied science, and an eighth received an associate degree.

The commencement was a big step for the school, which has seen its share of ups and downs.

Charleston Mayor Joe Riley gave the commencement address and said the school's roots stretch back to Hurricane Hugo.

"Disasters expose things as they are," he said, adding that the hurricane not only tore away roofs and plaster, it also exposed how the city had lost experienced and qualified craftsmen. It's a problem here and across the country, he said. "We're losing the essential capacity to build well and precisely."

John Paul Huguley recalled how the school later was forged during a visit in the late 1990s with Charleston's master ironworker, Philip Simmons. Huguley said sparks were flying in the workshop then as Simmons spoke passionately about his craft and the need to pass it on to younger generations.

During the past decade, the institution's direction sometimes wavered, along with its finances. At one point, the college planned to build a campus on McLeod Plantation on James Island, an idea opposed by some residents. The school last year decided to sell McLeod to repay a $734,500 city loan and get its finances in order.

The college still is seeking accreditation, which would enable students to get government grants and loans.

"Frankly there were times when we thought this day would never come," Pierre Manigault, chairman of the school's board of trustees, said during the ceremony. Manigault also is chairman of the board of Evening Post Publishing Co., parent company of Evening Post Digital and The Post and Courier. He vowed that school leaders would continue to "grow this college so that you will always be remembered" as the school's first graduating class.

Surrounded by walls in Washington Park that students helped restore and a lectern the graduates made as a final project, several of the new graduates said they hope to practice their crafts in Charleston.

Moyer Decatur Fountain, 32, who specialized in timber framing, said he plans to open a business here, perhaps starting with gazebo and pavilion projects. He said he was excited that he was part of an effort to put building arts "in the context of higher education," and that this first graduating class wasn't following others' footsteps. "Instead, we have left a trail."

Reach Tony Bartelme at 937-5554 or tbartelme@postandcourier.com.