Jacob S. Kayen
The 2026 Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation Scholarship for the Charleston Symposium has been awarded to Jacob Silverman Kayen. This scholarship is limited to graduate students in good standing at one of the programs represented by members of the Jenrette Foundation’s Historic Preservation Education Advisory Committee.
Jacob Kayen is currently pursuing a dual M.S. in Historic Preservation and Urban Planning at Columbia University’s GSAPP. His work is driven by a desire to make the past a relevant, living part of the present. He believes that true preservation requires the inclusion of diverse narratives and the seamless integration of historic fabric into daily life.
Kayen holds a B.A. in Archaeology from Columbia where his research involved the examination of archaeological excavations in New York City. Following his undergraduate studies, he worked in archaeological archives for city institutions before pivoting to the technology sector. He served as a Vice President in software engineering at Goldman Sachs, leading a front-end team in building accessible, user-focused digital experiences. Throughout his career, he has continued his work in archaeology, currently serving as a Trench Supervisor at Hadrian’s Villa in Italy.
Now returning to the built environment full-time, Kayen combines these distinct technical, analytical, and historical skill sets. He is passionate about advocating for historic spaces as vital, inclusive components of our contemporary landscapes.
Richard Hampton Jenrette personified innovation and mentorship during his successful career, earning him the epithet “the last gentleman on Wall Street.” Jenrette’s interest in historic preservation began in the late 1960s with his purchase of Roper House in Charleston, South Carolina, and Edgewater in the Hudson River Valley. Over the next 50 years, Jenrette purchased and restored old houses throughout the United States and the Caribbean, including Millford. In 1993, he founded Classical American Homes Preservation Trust with his gift of Ayr Mount in Hillsborough, North Carolina, the first of his properties to be open to the public. Today, the Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation extends his legacy in myriad ways by advancing education, innovation, and stewardship in the fields of historic preservation, decorative arts, and historic landscapes.
Suzanne Motte Jackson
The Charleston Symposium of the Preservation Society of Charleston is pleased to award the 2026 Sallie Enders Simons Scholarship to Suzanne Motte Jackson. This competitive scholarship recognizes an outstanding student majoring in historic preservation, art history, museum studies, decorative arts or a related field.
Jackson is currently at Pratt Institute School of Architecture studying for a Master of Science in Historic Preservation. Her research focuses on the palimpsestic aspects of preservation practice, hinging on the (re)analysis of historic spaces kept in stasis. From cemeteries to house museums, Jackson seeks to reinvigorate and restructure how the modern world might engage with these material and immaterial histories.
Her primary research interests hinge on both deciphering historic construction and landscaping techniques as well as on the curation of historic spaces, particularly through the lens of the house museum..
Jackson graduated from Bard College with a Bachelor of Arts in Classical Studies. Following her undergraduate studies, she forged a career in late-night television production working at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. From 2019 – 2022, she rose from Production Intern to Assistant to the Head Writers.
Jackson is following in the admirable footsteps of her grandfather, William McIntosh III, a Charlestonian who was very involved and concerned with historic preservation. McIntosh was awarded the South Carolina Governor's Award for Historic Preservation.
As a Charlestonian herself, Jackson is honored to receive the Sallie Enders Simons Scholarship to attend the 2026 Charleston Symposium. Though she has lived, worked, and studied in New York for over a decade, Charleston will always be her home.
Sallie Enders Simons (1927-2012) was a great supporter of historic preservation and the arts in Charleston. She attended Ashley Hall School in Charleston and graduated from St. Catherine’s School in Richmond, Virginia, after which she studied at Parsons School for Design in New York. She was a member of the Preservation Society of Charleston, The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of South Carolina, The Huguenot Society of South Carolina, and the Board of the Charleston Heritage Symposium. She was a passionate advocate for preservation, as well as an accomplished artist with a large portfolio of watercolors. Along with her wonderful sense of humor, she is remembered for a strong sense of history and community.
Dr. and Mrs. John M. Daniel III
Dr. and Mrs. Daniel M. Ervin
Susan and Charles Golden
Mr. & Mrs. James R. McNab, Jr.
Mrs. Robert M. Prioleau
Andrea and Steven Strawn
Preservation Society of Charleston
Charleston Symposium
147 King St.
Charleston, SC 29401
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