{"id":215992,"date":"2025-05-14T16:21:58","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T02:21:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=215992"},"modified":"2025-05-14T16:21:58","modified_gmt":"2025-05-15T02:21:58","slug":"from-graffiti-to-global-brands-uh-alum-koa-webster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/05\/14\/from-graffiti-to-global-brands-uh-alum-koa-webster\/","title":{"rendered":"From graffiti to global brands: UH<\/abbr> alum Koa Webster\u2019s creative journey"},"content":{"rendered":"
Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Webster
Webster at BarkleyOKRP<\/abbr> Chicago (Credit: Kira Diehm)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a local kid at McKinley High School, Koa Webster experimented with graffiti, an outlet that often got him into trouble. It wasn\u2019t until he enrolled at a University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> campus that he discovered how his passion for art could evolve into a meaningful and lasting career.<\/p>\n

\"Smiling
Webster with his parents at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa graduation in 2016<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“I didn\u2019t know much about colleges as a local kid, but the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> was my entryway into higher education and so it was good for me to be exposed to a lot of things,” said Webster.<\/p>\n

Webster earned a liberal arts degree from Kapiʻolani<\/span> Community College in 2013. In 2016, he earned degrees in international business and marketing from the UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Shidler College of Business and a degree in Chinese from the College of Arts, Languages & Letters. He has since built a successful career in advertising, and is currently the senior art director for BarkleyOKRP in Chicago<\/abbbr><\/a>.<\/p>\n

“Working in advertising in Chicago has been great and I get to do a lot of fun things for big national brands like Hidden Valley Ranch, Papa John\u2019s Pizza, Porsche, TGL<\/abbr>, Metro by T-Mobile,” Webster said. “The exposure is really cool to get to learn about how national brands operate.”<\/p>\n[vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https:\/\/youtube.com\/shorts\/rEDeZ5UMW5I” el_aspect=”916″ align=”right” el_id=”wrap-video-right”][vc_column_text]\n

Problem solver<\/h2>\n

His Shidler business education has helped in the visionary world of advertising.<\/p>\n

“Although I’m creative and I love to think of the most artsy, crazy commercial I can do, the thing I learned at Shidler is that these clients have real business problems and you can help them with a creative solution,” Webster said.<\/p>\n

One of his most transformative UH<\/abbr> experiences was studying abroad. Until then, Webster had not traveled outside of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> much, or interisland.<\/p>\n

“Through my scholarships, especially from the Freeman Foundation, I got to experience some things that I never thought I would,” he said. “The connections that I made through the programs were awesome.”<\/p>\n

Important connections<\/h2>\n

He encourages students to immerse themselves in other cultures.<\/p>\n

“All the connections through your experience abroad are sometimes those things that come back later on in life, and being able to put that on your resume is super valuable.”<\/p>\n

Today, Webster stays connected with fellow UH<\/abbr> alumni living in the windy city.<\/p>\n