“The most valuable aspect of this course is the instructor's willingness to cater the course objectives based on what technical skills any given student wanted to develop further. Jeff understands there's no right way to develop as a designer and is very understanding of the necessity to balance this course with our studio project. The assignments weren't too much to handle but still effectively delivered the curriculum.”
“Jeff was an incredible instructor, with valuable insight into my assignments as well as others. Additionally, his passion for design was extremely evident. He gave great critiques and I always felt he gave valuable feedback.”
“Jeff clearly expressed the project criteria and was consistently helpful outside of class. I always knew where to find him and he always made time to help me, which was a lot. I probably got help from Jeff more than most other people in the class. I understand now a lot of components to design I wouldn't have without Jeff.”
“I was not very familiar with working in a 3D space. This course taught me how to work with different mediums and how to perfect my craft while creating these things.”
“I appreciate that Jeff wants us to care about our projects and make them more long-lasting. The monolith project was also my favorite cause it was one of the very few projects I was really excited about. I also like the way he goes about having us create the solids at the beginning of the semester.”
“Thank you so much for such a wonderful semester. You know how to connect with students and how to personally help them based off individual needs. Thanks for teaching me how to work in 3D spaces!”
“I really enjoyed this course. The design theory and history lectures were incredibly valuable to me. They felt very relevant to the industry, which I think is often missed by those types of lectures. I would encourage more of this across the board. I often hear professors say to myself and my classmates, "How have you never heard of "X" designer?!"
“You made this semester actually bearable. Was debating dropping out for a year due to not being content with how DAAP handled my academic schedule this semester with complete and utter disregard, but this class was a breathe of fresh air.”
“I enjoyed my time with Jeff. And how the course was presented. We were able to choose a skill that we actually wanted to learn about and grow, instead of having topics forced upon us and us churning out mass amounts of tedious work alongside main studio. We also did sketching at the beginning of class which Jeff somehow made enjoyable. I have despised sketching my entire DAAP career because of how we were taught it in foundations, but this is the first time I actually enjoyed it.”
”I just want to say a huge thank you to Jeff for everything. Although I had a good background to drawing and 2D design, I had no background to 3D rendering and he really made it a great experience. I was very nervous in the beginning of the semester, but Jeff was so welcoming, funny, and passionate that he made the class feel just as passionate while doing our projects. I'm so lucky to have him as my first professor at DAAP!!”
”I truly enjoyed the opportunity to learn from Jeff. His knowledge and passion in all aspects of design were extremely inspiring and pushed me to work harder and improve to the best of my abilities. Class was made extremely enjoyable and I genuinely looked forward to every class.”
“Thank you for all the help and feedback you have given me, I have learned so much. Your efforts are greatly appreciated.”
“Everything we have studied I found very valuable. Jeff was able to communicate what was "good vs bad" design by using course vocabulary while also being open to new concepts and ideas. I really appreciate how specific and "clean/crisp" he wanted the quality of our work to be, because it really made our projects stand out.”
“The emphasis on quality craft and attention to detail was a key factor in the course and allowed for me to improve with every project. The constant feedback and instruction were very critical in success in the class. The instructor was always open to discussion and varying ideas.”
“The extremely personal relationship that the student builds with the professor is unmatched and extremely beneficial for the student, making it easier for the student to open up about doubts or issues. The different aspects that the professor made the students work on, like for example craftsmanship, serve not only for the course but for design and our future in general.”
“The most valuable aspect of this course was how easy it was to ask the instructor for help and how open he was to helping you find any way possible to do your projects well. The skills I learned in this class I know for a fact will help me largely in my future.”
“Jeff worked in RPC so he was constantly available and happy to work through problems with students any time he was working. This was extremely helpful. We didn't have to schedule ahead or go to an office. We just went over to the RPC to say hello.”
“Jeff did an amazing job at the end of every critique to ask for student's feedback on the projects and different ways to improve the curriculum for future foundations classes. He really considered everyone's input and continued to ask through the year. Jeff is already an amazing teacher and as long as he continues to input the feedback accumulated over the semester his teaching will improve.”
“Jeff was really good at making sure that the guidelines, expectations, and grading criteria for the various projects were clear by making them accessible when first introduced by providing paper copies and digital versions. The resources that were provided were extremely helpful whether it was documentation of the project or previous student examples. Jeff worked hard to make sure that he went around to every student to provide feedback at almost every stage of the process in each project, which was helpful and reassuring. He also did a good job at providing feedback during the different stages by acknowledging the successful parts of your work as well as critiquing different points that could be improved in your project whether it was refining different aspects or recommending a new approach. This method provided a great environment for me to develop projects that I felt were both personal and exemplified my best work. I loved Jeff's class this semester and hope to have him again!”
“Jeff was very hands on. he gave complements and suggestions for better outcomes. I felt like he was partnering with us rather than lecturing.”
“My instructor was especially effective when encouraging our own creative ideas within and outside of our projects.”
“My professor explained the courses in a very interesting way. He helped us a lot during the processes by giving his opinions and helping us out with the equipment.”
“Jeff was excellent with connecting our projects with real world events and history. This aspect made it more inspiring to work and it was interesting to learn about design history and facts that I would not have known otherwise.”
“Jeff was more enthusiastic about design in general. he stimulated interest through bringing in related concepts, models, or examples. He brought in history and maintained a lighthearted attitude.”
”Jeff was great at setting the bar very high for us as students, so we staved to do better work than we thought we could”
“Jeff was effective in helping students develop their ideas into a more fully developed and complex project. He was also helpful in taking student questions and encouraging students to think outside the box.”
”Jeff was especially effective in his ability to make the studio environment very comfortable and encouraged creativity.
“Jeff was always asking for feedback in what he could have been doing better. He was always interacting with students, showing better techniques and clarifying anything we needed help with.”
”He is extremely knowledgeable in the subject he teaches. He was always ready to answer questions we have as well as give constructive criticism then explain what we can improve on. He always had reasoning behind any corrections he made to what we were creating.”
”Jeff was an excellent teacher. He clearly explained the objective of every assignment in an exciting and stimulating manner and offered very relevant advice and feedback throughout the process of each project. He related our 3D projects to graphic design well, and taught us how to strive for our very best effort and craft.”