Kevin Christophersen
Kevin Christophersen, MA, Director of Advertising Studies in the Marketing Communication Department at Columbia College Chicago, combines his advertising expertise with his passion for teaching.
Kevin started his career in advertising when he landed a part-time job at Leo Burnett, an international advertising agency, during his sophomore year of college. Spending much of his free time at Burnett, he networked, helped his colleagues succeed on various projects, and learned as much as he could about the advertising world.
After graduating from Columbia with a B.A. in Marketing Communication, he was promoted to a Media position at Burnett and handled the following clients, along with other national consumer and business-to-business brands: Ameritech, All State, Dairy, Keebler, Kellogg, McDonald’s, Oldsmobile, Philip Morris, Procter and Gamble.
Subsequently, he obtained positions in client service at various other agencies and supervised/facilitated all aspects of strategic communication for the following clients: Abbott Labs, Boise Cascade, Liberty Federal Bank, Pet Ag, Bobs Candy, F&F Foods, Sorbee, Scala Beef, and Zenith among others.
Kevin’s successful achievements in the advertising industry left him hungry for more opportunities to broaden his career. Specifically he wanted to help students understand and excel in advertising and marketing. He joined the Columbia College Chicago adjunct faculty in 1999, and was asked to serve as an Artist in Residence in 2000. One year later, he interviewed for a full-time faculty position. His early merits in advertising, along with his vast knowledge on the subject, and his overall vision for the students, led the Marketing Communication Department and Columbia College Chicago, to hire him full time.
Outside the classroom, he has served as the Marketing Communication Representative for the Columbia College Council, was a member of the Strategic Planning Committee, and a founding member of Critical Encounters. Currently he is the Marketing Communication Department Articulation Coordinator and a member of the School of Media Arts Documentary Task Force. He’s also published several articles on various academic topics, such as Service Learning, and Creating Safe Classrooms for GLBT Students.
In addition to his career in academia, Kevin obtained an MA in Arts, Entertainment and Media Management at Columbia. Further, he served as the Director of Business Strategy and Marketing for Boystownchicago.com, maintains pro-bono clients with various community service organizations, works as a mentor for GLBT youth, is a member of the CAF- the Chicago Advertising Federation, and a paid marketing consultant.