Rodney Leonel Mateo

Rodney Mateo is a senior at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). He is studying in the Major of Communications Media with a minor in Journalism. A typical day in Rodney’s student life consists of working closely with the camera, shooting, and taking photos, receiving, and giving critiques and long nights of editing. In his college career, he never took an opportunity for granted to gain experience in front of and behind the camera. For example, Rodney took the liberty of becoming an anchorman for IUP-TV. He was nervous at first; however, he was able to adapt to the situation and perform the best way he could. Rodney had an eye-opening experience while learning the essentials to the News. He quickly realized how every part operated from the front to the back of the camera is necessary for a successful future in this business. He wasn’t always this motivated, his first two years at IUP didn’t go too well. He was a failing student who was stuck in academic probation and had one foot out the door from being released from school. After finally maturing and lowering his ego, he sought out help where he met the love of his life. She motivated him in ways that made him excited to learn. Two years later Rodney went from a 1.5 GPA to a 3.2 GPA, he has made the Dean’s List three consecutive semesters.

As a child, Rodney never did what most children did. He was not a fan of going outside and doing physical activities. Other than the occasional basketball match, young Rodney loved (and still loves) to stay indoors. Being inside all day, Rodney attempted to find hobbies. He tried knitting and playing on the GameCube. But Rodney always found himself going back to the TV screen and watched anything that was on. His curiosity about Media production began to grow. As a result, he started watching behind the scenes and watching closely how TV shows and movies were made. His curiosity grew and grew as he began to watch the end credits and search for any familiar names. This obsession with television allowed Rodney to venture out his tv genre from Japanese anime to Romanic comedies. Soon he developed an addiction to the medium and realized that this was his calling in life. Rodney has always identified himself as a people pleaser and believes it is his duty to lighten up his audiences’ day. As a result, he strives to make his content light-hearted and make his audience laugh. Rodney’s career goal is to leave a lasting impression on the audience.

Rodney is a proud family man. He will always put his family’s wellbeing before anyone, even himself. He grew up with the saying, “Blood is thicker than water.” Rodney is so close to his family that he even has a group chat with his brother and 13 of his cousins. Even when they are all miles away from each other, they take the time to check in on each other and look forward to their yearly basketball tournaments on the 4th of July. Other than media, Rodney loves basketball, anime, gaming, and corny jokes. His favorite basketball team is the Boston Celtics and his favorite Celtic player will always be Paul Pierce. A few of his many favorite anime series are Dragon Ball Z, Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood, and Naruto. Rodney’s favorite gaming company is tied between PlayStation and Nintendo. Rodney Mateo is a fun-loving guy, who always tries to make you laugh.