Photo Credit: Senior Media Portfolio
If you’re walking through SUNY Old Westbury’s Media Innovation Center (MIC), you’ll likely hear students asking, “has anyone seen Terry?” or “where’s Terry?” As he shifts from one room to another, Terry readily responds to the calls for his guidance and mentors the students, as he was once in their shoes as a Media & Communications student at OW.
Terry Phebe is an Instructional Support Assistant at SUNY OW. Before his current position officially opened up, Phebe looked for jobs on and off campus. The timing was just right when he was informed of the job opening around the time of his graduation in 2019. In his position, he helps maintain the MIC and offers support to media students and faculty. He mentors and trains the MIC interns to help them reach their potential through engaging hands-on experiences.
Phebe attended SUNY Old Westbury and started off as a Biology major with the intent to pursue sports therapy. However, he also had a strong interest in media. He was a dancer for All the Right Moves (A.T.R.M.) and made mixtapes and highlight reels for his dance videos and for his friends who were athletes. After tagging along to an Old Westbury Web Radio (OWWR) meeting with a fellow A.T.R.M. member, Professor Joseph Manfredi talked to Phebe about his interests and guided him towards the MIC. Phebe soon began pursuing a Media & Communications degree and became heavily involved in the schools’ TV studio.
As a student, Phebe found great interest in working behind the camera for OWTV News, which was, and still is, advised by Professor Lisa Payton. “I very much enjoyed the process of going to film for the package pieces, putting that together, [and] editing,” he expressed. He was mentored by his OWTV News Team, including senior students at the time, as well as his professors. Dr. Ozgur Akgun, who goes by the nickname ‘Oz’ around campus, certainly helped guide Phebe. Akgun began working at OW around the same time that Phebe switched his major. Phebe said, “we were learning together how the Media Innovation Center here was kind of being built and working, so he kind of took me under his wing.”
After becoming an Instructional Support Assistant, Phebe had to translate his experience as a mentee to becoming a mentor. As a student, Phebe was one of the managing producers of the Media Innovation Center, making it easier for him to help students and adopt the role of a mentor. He described mentoring as “natural” and “second nature.” Prior to joining the MIC, Terry was involved in many other activities, but the more he participated and collaborated with the media students, the greater of a leadership role he took on.
Phebe has worked in the MIC in his position for three years. Akgun stated, “watching Terry to grow from a student to a colleague is an exciting journey.” Phebe’s role at the MIC is to bridge the gap between students and faculty. Akgun said that since Phebe was a student at OW and is now a staff member, “he knows the problems, challenges, opportunities, and advantages of this system.”
Having been a student a couple years ago, Phebe can connect well with the students. He’s not in the same position as them, but he understands what it feels like to be in their shoes. Bethany Watson, an executive producer and intern for the MIC, said, “he just made sure I felt welcomed, and that I was also doing the things that I needed to do in order to succeed.”
A lot has changed in the MIC since Phebe was a student, including the technology and equipment used. While the return to campus post-COVID created some challenges, Phebe worked to adjust by using his prior education and leadership skills to learn the new equipment and translate that knowledge to students.
He does get “dragged in every which direction all the time.” While this keeps him busy and highlight his importance to the MIC, it also goes to show that his role is demanding. Regardless, in frustrating or difficult situations, Phebe helps bring a sense of calmness and connection to students and staff. “He has that very calm aura around him sometimes that helps everybody,” Akgun expressed.
Phebe doesn’t only work with students, he also helps out a lot with the faculty members. He assists them in getting ready for their classes or answers their questions about any new equipment. Phebe also handles some of the college-wide events, providing support. “The amount of effort he’s been putting in for so many years, it’s beyond his required responsibilities and time,” Akgun expressed. “[Phebe] is a very valuable and important asset for the college.”
Akgun noted that students enjoy being around Phebe. He said, “they feel comfortable sharing many things [with him], which helps us to have a very open and diverse group of students here [at the MIC].” Any students that have worked with or currently work with Phebe all express that anytime he’s around, you’re guaranteed to feel welcomed and have a good time. When Marcus Ennette, an intern at the MIC, met Terry for the first time, he clearly remembered how funny and full of good energy Phebe was. “He was so open and willing to talk to you and get your opinion on things,” Ennette expressed.
During his free time, Phebe likes to play sports and spend quality time with his family. He likes watching movies, shows and partaking in all things creative, such as making music and writing poetry. Phebe translates these energetic aspects of his personality into his work with students. Ennette explained that working at the MIC with Phebe doesn’t feel like a task, but is rather enjoyable. “He also gives you the space to put your own creative input in and just be yourself while also learning something new,” Ennette said. “So, I appreciate him for that and I love working here with him.”
Phebe wants everyone to succeed and aims to contribute to the developmental success of the MIC. He hopes that in the future, the MIC can be as state-of-the-art as possible and run as a fully-functioning center, whether it be for entertainment, news, or radio. A personal goal of his is to create positive working relationships between big media companies, such as Netflix or Paramount, and OW so students can also have access to such opportunities.
Phebe has high hopes for the futures of his students and believes they can achieve what they set out for. He hopes that when students find success in their respective careers, they not only remember who he is, but also remember him as someone who was always there to lend a helping hand. “When they get famous and they become news broadcasters or sports entertainers or whatever it is, [hopefully] they just come back to Old West and tell people about their roots and hopefully they tell them about me like, ‘hey, this guy really helped me out,’” Phebe expressed. “That’d be nice.”
