Outstanding Graduate: Rebekah Sullivan, School of Art and Design

Rebekah Sullivan learned to follow her he(art) at San Diego State University. A first-generation college student, Sullivan didn’t see herself earning a degree and being able work while attending school, but with encouragement from her family and friends, she found a deeper strength through it all. Her strength earned her a Center for Visual and Performing Arts Scholarship.

“Now I have a real love for school, and I’m planning on furthering my education,” Sullivan says. She plans to continue to create art, taking what she learned from SDSU to graduate school to earn her master’s in fine art.

“Through the painting and printmaking program here at State, I learned new processes of utilizing materials to engage different ideas, and I was constantly inspired by the students and professors around me,” Sullivan says.

Sullivan hopes that for the future of her graduating class, “with all the differences we have and through all the difficulties we encounter, we will choose to seek understanding and persevere with compassion, as this world is only as kind and good as we are to each other.”

As for incoming freshman at SDSU, she advises, “you only get to do this once in your life. I know it’s a cliche but don’t worry too much about the future, it will figure itself out. Embrace the work and enjoy the company of the people you meet. Don’t be afraid to reach out to professors or your fellow students, you’re here to learn and SDSU is full of wonderful and brilliant people willing to teach you.”

If a reporter interviewed people close to her, Sullivan says her parents would describe their point of pride about her as being “proud of my character and who I am becoming. They’ve always believed to treat people with compassion and respect, and I am learning to do that as best I can.”

The content within this article has been edited by Lizbeth Persons.