Alex Parraga is the Chief Digital Officer at UC Santa Barbara, a position he’s held since 2014 when he first joined the university. Alex oversees university branding, digital strategy, and overall integrated marketing efforts.

He’s responsible for the university’s first-ever brand identity system and has fully revamped the marketing culture on campus. Prior to joining UC Santa Barbara Alex spent the majority of his professional career in the advertising industry. That’s where he originally found his passion for brand-building and integrated marketing communications climbing up the account management ladder at agencies including Ogilvy and BBDO and with client partners such as Mars Chocolate, General Electric, and American Express.

Alex discovered the advertising path thanks to an amazing experience in the AAAA’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program in the summer of 2002. He’s been in the advertising & marketing game ever since. Outside of work, Alex is a dedicated husband and father of four, not to mention a huge basketball fan. He’s a proud native New Yorker and a graduate of NYU’s Stern School of Business where he earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing & management.