The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Management Information Office (MIO) student workers networked with former student employees during the annual MIO Alumni Day in August.
MIO is the student-staffed residential computing office for the Department of Residence Life.
The MIO team consists of 30 students divided into computer technicians and programmers.
The alumni event has been taking place for about five years, according to UW Oshkosh assistant director of Residence Life information technology and budget planning, Victor Alatorre.
Alatorre said the reunion gives students perspective on future careers they can obtain in the field of information technology.
“Eighteen years worth of students have come back to connect with MIO,” Alatorre said. “It creates a sense of connection between the past and the future of MIO.”
For alumni Tim Curless ’07 and MBA ’10, of Verona, and Brian Urbanek ’13, of Milwaukee, working for MIO was a beneficial experience during their time at UWO.
Curless is a technical architect for AHEAD, a data center and hybrid cloud consulting partner and value-added reseller in Chicago. He spends time speaking to customers about trends in infrastructure and hybrid cloud, so they are better equipped to respond to the needs of their business.
Curless said MIO taught him the value of information technology and how useful an individual can be in the field.
“The MIO not only helped me in my professional journey, but also was the beginning of everything I have done to date in information technology,” he said.
Urbanek is a photojournalist for WDJT-TV, which is a CBS affiliate in Milwaukee. His position requires him to shoot and edit video for live newscasts.
He said MIO provided him with a real-world experience and helped him succeed by providing access to modern technologies.
“It taught me how to work with and interact with actual clients on video projects that were going to be used for something,” he said. “…Working with everyone in that office from videographers to photographers to graphic designers was always a pleasure and an experience I’ll never forget.”
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