Victoria Smalls of St. Helena Island was awarded the Governor’s Award in Humanities at the 33rd Annual South Carolina Awards in the Humanities Luncheon and Ceremony in Columbia, SC on Wednesday, October 23rd.
And it is an award that is well-deserved.
The Governor’s Awards in the Humanities recognize people who have made outstanding contributions to the humanities in South Carolina. The awards are presented at an annual luncheon and ceremony at the Pastides Alumni Center in Columbia
Victoria, a native of St. Helena Island, is the Principal Consultant of Smalls Cultural Resources, where she champions Gullah Geechee communities across the United States and their global connections to Africa’s Diaspora, focusing on cultural and historical preservation, as well as climate, land, and ocean justice.
She has held significant positions such as state Commissioner on the SC African American Heritage Commission, federal Commissioner on the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, and Executive Director of the Gullah Geechee Corridor National Heritage Area.
In these roles, she collaborated with local, national, and international partners, and various governmental bodies to protect, preserve, and interpret the history, cultural practices, heritage sites, and natural resources of the Gullah Geechee people across the 12,000 square-mile National Heritage Area spanning North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. She also worked with Congressional champions to reauthorize the National Heritage Area through 2037.
Her leadership extends to the Penn Center National Historic Landmark District, where she served as Director of the York W. Bailey Museum, History, Art and Culture Program, and Assistant to the Executive Director.
Additionally, she was Program Manager at the International African American Museum and a National Park Service Ranger with the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park.
An alumna of SC Carolina State University, Technical College of the Lowcountry, and the University of South Carolina—Beaufort, Victoria’s passion for community advocacy and service has earned her numerous accolades, including the Black History USA Community Advocate Award, recognition as one of the 12 Black Leaders to Know in South Carolina, and selection as a Maven for The Art of Community: Rural SC.
She has also been named a Leo Twiggs Arts Diversity Leadership Scholar, a Riley Fellow in Diversity Leadership with The Riley Institute at Furman University, and one of the 50 Most Influential Leaders in Charleston, SC.
In 2022, Victoria received The President’s Lifetime Achievement Award and Medal for her dedicated volunteer service.
Huge congrats to Victoria. You can follow her and see what she does on Facebook at We be Gullah.
