Salisbury University offers a variety of equipment to allow students to get hands-on experience within their fields. Students can practice a range of broadcasting skills like reporting, meteorology and even studio production, yet none of this would be possible without the man behind the scenes: Multimedia Technician and Adjunct Faculty Mike Camillo.
When he’s not helping students, Camillo can be found in his office in Conway Hall next to the editing lab. Once he arrives to campus in the early morning hours, he is in charge of ensuring distance learning classes are up and running. This includes distance learning classes for exercise science, health and human performances, health sciences and social work.
He is also responsible for helping students who may run into technical difficulties, whether it be needing help using editing software, managing camera settings or answering questions related to equipment.
Camillo began working here in 2008 after he was contacted by the manager of media services about an opening position.
Camillo attended Salisbury State University as a freshman in 1998. He said when he received the call that Salisbury’s Department of Media Services was hiring, he jumped at the opportunity to return to the campus he once walked as a student.
Camillo graduated with a degree in Mass Communication, yet he said media production had not always been a part of his plan.
“I came here originally to be a music teacher,” Camillo said. “Then I found out pretty early that I was better at TV and radio than I was at playing the trumpet.”
Before coming back to Salisbury University, Camillo briefly worked in the TV industry at stations like WBOC and Montogomery Community Television.
He said he had many professors throughout his time at SU who inspired him to pursue the media industry. Dr. Andrew Sharma, who currently works at SU, is among those names.
“He was actually the first comm professor I had after switching from music to communication,” Camillo said. “Dr. Sharma and I became friends while I was student, and we still are now.”
Another professor Camillo mentioned was Theater Professor Robert Smith, whose class he had while completing his theatre minor.
“He was just an amazing teacher,” Camillo said. “He was inspiring and brilliant and one of the best teachers I had.”
Camillo explained how becoming a professor at the school he once attended as a student has been a 360 experience for him. He is now teaching 242 Intro to Studio, a class that he recalls being one of his favorites. He said that he finds himself using some of the same methods his professors used to teach him.
“I teach some of the same information because technically Dr. Kendall, even though she retired and has sadly passed away, was my mentor professor and when you’re an adjunct professor, you have a lead professor for a course,” Camillo said. “So, I teach what was essentially her syllabus … we start off with a project called ‘up close and personal,’ and we did the same thing when I was a student in 1999.”
Camillo said one of his favorite parts about his job is the connections he makes with students.
“I get excited to see success in my students,” Camillo said. “That’s with both my job in teaching and my job in IT, because I get to work with students all the time and I develop relationships with them, and it is really cool.”
Camillo has other obligations besides his full-time job, like being the advisor for WXSU. He oversees WXSU by helping to answer questions, signing off on requests and fixing anything that may be broken.
“I’m really excited about how great the management team has been for the last about six or seven years, because there was a point in time where there were no members of the club,” Camillo said. “Now we’ve got 60 people that show up at the meetings and so I love to see how it's grown back.”
Camillo said WXSU holds a special place in his heart. Camillo was the WXSU president when he attended SU, which is how he met his wife, Dr. Christina Camillo.
Dr. Christina Camillo was the assistant music director for WXSU at the time. The two were introduced to each other by a mutual friend in the club and a few years later, they got married.
Camillo said if there’s one thing he could tell students it would be get involved on campus.
“Get involved because that’s the stuff that matters when you graduate,” Camillo said. “If all you did was class, of course you have a good GPA because all you did was homework, so do stuff.
“I was involved in WXSU and SUTV and that’s why I was successful, because I did stuff beyond just showing up.”
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By TESSAH GOOD
Managing Editor
Image courtesy of Christina Camillo
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