Christine Annette Jackson
Day in the Life
“The sense of community in the Department of Design Media Arts is incredible, the camaraderie infectious…I felt so supported by my fellow colleagues. We all wanted each other to succeed. We all made each other better.” - Christine Annette Jackson '15, B.A., Design Media Arts
UCLA stood out during Christine Annette Jackson’s college search because, as a large research university, it allowed her to pursue all of her passions at the highest level: “I have multiple interests that couldn't really be accommodated by a lot of other schools.” As a double major in English and Design Media Arts (DMA), each major informed the other during her four years as a Bruin.
Kinky Curly posters designed by Christine Jackson
Christine found community, within the context of such a large University, in the School of the Arts and Architecture, forming close relationships with her peers and professors that enriched her education and propelled her towards a career as a designer. Her peers in DMA formed a tight-knit group of students—meaning Christine always had someone to bounce ideas off of when finishing a project late at night, and had a network of support from which to draw even after graduation.
Graphite Issue 6, Designed by Christine Jackson and Jesse Stecklow of Content Is Relative
Since graduating in May, Christine continues to run the design studio Content is Relative, which she founded with Jesse Stecklow, a fellow alum, in 2011, and began working for the alumni-run company Use All Five. “Collaboration [with fellow DMA students] has been such an important part of my growth, my pleasure in design, and my success,” she says.
As a UCLA student who studied during some of the most severe budget cuts in UC history, Christine saw first-hand the need for financial support of the department. “[When budgets are cut,] students really feel the effects. You get less class options, and you feel the program shift,” she says. Funding from private supporters can help maintain the integrity of the curriculum and ensure that students have access to the state-of-the-art equipment that is essential to design and media arts programs.
Please consider supporting students like Christine with a gift to the department or to the Dean’s Fund for Excellence, which supports students across the entire School of the Arts and Architecture. Your generosity will count towards UCLA’s ambitious Centennial Campaign to support the next 100 years of excellence.