Three Woodbury University 2017 Graduates Win Graphic Design USA Student Design Awards

Evoking the image on one student’s poster, Woodbury University’s Graphic Design program continues to rock, as the prestigious journal Graphic Design USA bestowed its coveted Student Design Awards on three graduating seniors — Aziz Alhalwan, Patricia Hajjar and Christina Laguens — the university announced today.

For Woodbury’s Graphic Design Department, the refrain is a familiar one.  Graphic Design USA, one of the leading publications in the field, broke with precedent earlier this year, naming three Woodbury students – including Hajjar and Laguens – to the annual GDUSA Students To Watch™ list, rather than the usual two.  Then, Graphic Design USA named Cate Roman, Associate Professor of Graphic Design, to the 2017 edition of its “GDUSA Educators-to-Watch” issue.  In 2016, the Graphic Design Department was recognized as among the nation’s top 25 graphic design programs – the second time in as many years.

For more than five decades, Graphic Design USA has conducted competitions to spotlight areas of excellence and opportunity for creative professionals.  GDUSA’s American Graphic Design Award is the original and the flagship, open to the entire design community: design firms, and agencies, corporations, non-profits, institutions, freelancers, students and more.  It honors outstanding work of all kinds and across all media.

Each Woodbury honoree graduated in May with a BFA in Graphic Design.  Their stories follow:

• An international student from Saudi Arabia, Aziz Alhalwan was honored for his design work entitled The Power of Music.  Alhalwan began his studies with little background in graphic design and design in general, but by his second year was freelancing, building experience while studying.  He interned at Social Edge in Culver City, where he worked closely with both design and development teams.  Alhalwan is currently serving as a volunteer designer with a local philanthropic organization and awaiting completion of required work permit forms. “I’ve had interest from huge companies in the entertainment industry, and I’m honored and thrilled to win a GDUSA Student Award,” he said.  “I want to thank everyone who supported me.”

• Patricia Hajjar was recognized for her “Top of the Rock” poster.  Originally from Beirut, Lebanon, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her education and career.  She has won consecutive awards in Graphic Design studio courses, received the University Award recognizing the highest undergraduate scholastic achievement, and has had her work featured at the annual Graphic Design show.  She was an Executive Board member of Woodbury’s AIGA chapter and is a Graphic Design USA Student to Watch™ for 2017. This year, she also received an award for her packaging design from the American Graphic Design Awards/Certificates of Excellence competition.  She has begun her professional career with the creative team at Princess Cruises while also seeking opportunities in freelance graphic design.

• Christina Laguens took GDUSA honors for The Hub Branding & Collateral.  Born and reared on Oahu, she relocated to California to study graphic design.  She interned as a graphic designer with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation where she helped with rebranding and the 2016 SAG awards.  She also worked with the advertising firm Saatchi & Saatchi LA, where she designed a full rebranding of the agency’s internal asset management program and assisted with the Toyota rebrand.  She has participated in Los Angeles area AIGA workshops and now works full time as a Jr. Art Director with Saatchi & Saatchi LA on the Toyota digital creative team.

“We could not be more proud of Aziz, Patricia and Christina, whose creativity and dedication to mastering their craft bring recognition to themselves, to the Graphic Design Department and to Woodbury University,” said Behnoush McKay, M.F.A., Graphic Design chair in Woodbury’s School of Media, Culture and Design. “Competitions such as this one attest to the proven ability of Woodbury students and grads to compete for top jobs in the Graphic Design field.  This high-level recognition provides further evidence of the caliber of students who are attracted to our Graphic Design program.”

Woodbury’s Graphic Design program grants a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, which is included in the university’s accreditation by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).   The BFA is a professional degree, which translates to a top education resulting in strong, competitive student portfolios that stand out in the graphic design industry.  Woodbury students consistently win international and national design awards, and have achieved recognition in entertainment design, web design, advertising design, package design, photography, identity design and environmental graphics.

Small class size allows individual attention from the professional faculty and educational experiences both inside and outside of the classroom, which provides students with the ability to create effective and engaging visual communication solutions.  The program has gained a reputation for graduating top quality designers ready to take their place in the profession.

About Woodbury University

Founded in 1884, Woodbury University is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Southern California. The university ranks 15th among the nation’s “25 Colleges That Add the Most Value,” according to Money Magazine, was voted “Best Graduate School” in the Los Angeles Daily News 2018 Readers Choice Awards, and is a 2018-19 College of Distinction. Woodbury was a finalist for the General Community Service Award, a part of the 2015 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll recognition program. With campuses in Burbank/Los Angeles and San Diego, the university offers bachelor\\’s degrees from the School of Architecture, School of Business, School of Media, Culture & Design, and College of Liberal Arts, along with a Master of Business Administration, Master of Architecture, Master of Interior Architecture and Master of Science in Architecture. The San Diego campus offers Bachelor of Architecture and Master of Architecture, Master of Interior Architecture and Master of Landscape Architecture degrees, as well as a Master of Science in Architecture, Real Estate Development. Visit woodbury.edu for more information.