Book Shop School of Ads Students Set for One Club Pencils

Budding creatives in the LA area know a secret: the unassuming and grassroots Book Shop School of Ads. This powerhouse LA-based programme that is a part-time night school is getting big recognition this year with two student teams about to win One Club pencils. (All other schools that produced student wins are full-time portfolio, undergraduate or graduate programs.)

During each winter semester, Nathan Crow, SVP, GCD/Art at RPA and Nick Liebeskind, CD at True Car teach a team class that is designed to create work to be entered in the One Club Young Ones competition. The Book Shop School of Ads has a track record of students winning merit awards – this year, for the first time, students in this program are set to be awarded two team-entry pencils on May 7 during the One Club Student Awards Ceremony. 

Founded in 1988, Book Shop School of Ads is a four-semester program. Approximately 80–100 students attend classes each semester. It’s estimated that more than 10,000 students have gone through the program since its founding.

RPA has been involved with this program since its beginning when Book Shop School of Ads founder Mike Whitlow reached out to RPA co-founder Larry Postaer for support. Postaer notes that at the time, the concept of teaching and bringing together a future copywriter with an art director to work as a team was lacking. Kimberley Craig became co-owner with Whitlow in 1992.

RPA hosts classes year round along with several other LA-area ad agencies. RPA creatives regularly teach classes; Crow has been teaching at Bookshop for 14 years and Liebeskind for 10. (And, RPA currently has 16 Book Shop School of Ads alumni working as creatives.)

The Book Shop School of Ads has been quietly training and mentoring the next generation of creative talent in LA for decades. “It’s amazing to get well-served acknowledgement for the program and the incredible talent of these students,” said Crow.

Here are the two teams (below) who are being recognised this year and are from Book Shop School of Ads. They were taught by Crow and Liebeskind.

Team: Budweiser brief — Digital/Online:

Julia Dumas (CW)

John Fish (CW)

Sam McKinney (AD) (former RPA intern)

Robert Smith (CW)

 

Team: Hewlett Packard brief — Digital/Online:

Jenny Handke (CW)

Amanda Kunrath (AD) (former RPA intern)

Aubrey LaDuke (CW)

Hanna LoPatin (CW)