Historic Preservation and Community Planning

Phone: 843.953.3888
R. Grant Gilmore III, Director

About the Program

The Historic Preservation and Community Planning program approaches the subjects of historic preservation, architectural and urban design, planning, and architectural and urban history as a group of related disciplines that together address the management of change in the built environment from design and management perspectives. The Historic Preservation and Community Planning program challenges students to learn these subjects at local, state, regional, national and international levels and provides instruction at these levels in its coursework. Charleston, one of the cities most closely associated with the preservation movement in America and indeed internationally, serves as the perfect laboratory for the study of preservation and urban design issues.

The intention of the program is to awaken in the student an appreciation for the complexity of the fields of historic preservation and urban design. Through a combination of general and survey courses and specific practical applications (including a required field internship), the student will begin to understand the multitude of forces acting upon cities, towns, and rural areas that either encourage or hinder sustainable preservation and urban design practices in the 21st century. Most importantly, the program allows students to learn about the people that once inhabited historic buildings and those that are impacted by urban design and preservation decisions today. The built environment is visualized as a dynamic reflection of current cultural values and provides an inspiration for social, economic and political change.

The program is grounded in the visually oriented environment of the Department of Art and Architectural History and the School of the Arts, yet is still flexible enough to allow students to bring in other courses and experiences through its interdisciplinary curriculum. Multiple opportunities exist for students to study abroad in this discipline.

Majors

• Historic Preservation and Community Planning, B.A.  

Minors

• Historic Preservation and Community Planning Minor