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In 2005, after a career in advertising spanning 20+ years, working both agency and in-house, I became an Instructor at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. There, I teach both undergraduate and graduate studies in the both the Schools of Advertising and Photography. I am writing you today to introduce, and recommend, a former student of mine to you — Rich Sprague.

 

Rich was enrolled in my Advertising 605 class during his final semester before being awarded his Master’s degree. The course is an entry-level class, geared toward those entering web/new media and design; and, frankly, I was quite surprised that a person of Rich's skill was enrolled in this course. Thankfully, Rich was not looking for an easy-grade as he finished his studies, but instead he took each project as a challenge to push himself further. I was tough on him, as I am with all my students, and he did not disappoint. He presented solutions to assignments always in excess of the requirements, and which showed his out of the box creative thinking.

His work is filled with ideas that go beyond traditional advertising, he sets high expectations for himself, and he sees to it that they are fulfilled. When faced with creative tasks, which were unfamiliar to him, he took the bull by the horns and ran with it. His participation in discussion was second to none, and he effectively critiqued his classmates in both a constructive and welcoming way—teaching hard-learned skills as well as offering advice.

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