Master Segaent masters historic preservation
By Amy Condon
Clayton Holloway graduated from SCAD in November with a Master of Arts in Historic Preservation and a 3.4 GPA. He did it while working full-time with the Georgia Air National Guard and serving a tour of duty in Iraq.
Master Sergeant Holloway appears to be the classic overachiever, but he took his time over the course of his 18 years in the military to get his degrees. He received a Bachelor of Science in History from Columbia College-Missouri in 2006, while he completed the U.S. Air Force Senior Non-Commissioned Officers Course. The Air Force offered him an opening in Officer Training School, but he chose the enlisted route instead.
“I like being enlisted, working with my hands,” he said.
When his time in the Air Force ended, he moved to Savannah and joined the Georgia Air National Guard part-time.
Holloway also took a part-time job with SCAD as a maintenance tech. A routine call to assemble a desk for the then-chair of the Historic Preservation Program led to a series of conversations where he was encouraged to enroll.
Duty called, however, and Holloway was deployed to Iraq in 2007 during the troop surge. He oversaw the security forces monitoring the Iraqi Nationals that worked on the base.
Holloway said the thought of graduate school intimidated him at first, but going through war taught him he could do things he didn’t know he could.
“It was the best thing [for me],” recalled Holloway. “You’re getting mortared, and it was reassuring to log on to Blackboard and see SCAD there. [It] helped me stay connected.”
The college held his job while he was overseas for six months. When he returned from Baghdad, he continued the online courses – one per quarter. The National Guard offered him a full-time position at the Combat Readiness Training Center (CRTC), located at the Savannah International Airport. He quit his job at SCAD but kept up with his studies.
“I was surprised by going to school online,” he said. “I found it challenging, but you do learn a lot.”
In his role at the CRTC, Master Sgt. Holloway works as part of the team training active and guard troops for war. He readies vehicles for training and deployment.
Ultimately, though, he wants to use what he learned at SCAD. Until he finishes out his time in the military, Holloway intends to volunteer on local projects and gain some hands-on experience.
“Savannah is a great place to be for historic preservation.”
