Through trial and error, a lot of hard work and the ability to ‘go with the flow’ WVU grad finds niche
Andrew Scritchfield knew he was going to be Mountaineer from the time he was in high school. What he didn’t know back then was that his Mountaineer ties would land him the job he has come to love so much.
Born in Morgantown, Andrew grew up in Bridgeport, W.Va., but knew he wanted to return to his hometown to continue his college education. “I was always into Mountaineer sports and went to all the journalism camps, so I knew WVU had a good journalism program,” Andrew says.
During his four years at WVU, Andrew worked at the local WVU radio station, U92, as a sports deejay. He stuck around during the summer to work events and fill in whenever he was needed, doing whatever needed to be done, whether it was sports, music, or deejaying at different events.
After college Andrew worked as a broadcast reporter for WBOY-TV but decided he wanted to move to a nearby major city. He moved to D.C. after landing a job with a local CBS affiliate, WUSA-TV. Unsure of what his true passion really was, he ventured from TV for a little while and went to work for a dot.com company. It was then that he realized being behind the camera and shooting was his first love.
As an entrepreneur, Andrew and a friend started their own small production company, Revolve Solutions, LLC. The success and work of his company caught the eye of fellow Mountaineer Jason Neal, who worked at NBC, and Andrew was offered a job.
Andrew’s job as a cameraman for NBC News has given him many memorable experiences and opportunities. His most recent stories took him near Port-au Prince, Haiti, where he covered U.S. military relief efforts.
For two and a half weeks, Andrew traveled by helicopter between his amphibious home, the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, and empty cow pastures near Port-au Prince, where he was able to interact with the Haitian people.
His stories have not only touched, but impacted the lives of people. “We did a really nice story about a Haitian born marine whom we met during foot patrol,” Andrew says. “We heard him speaking Creole to some of the people, and found out he was born and lived in Haiti until he was six or seven. He moved to New York, went to school, learned English, and joined the Marines to thank our country for taking him in. We found out a month later, because of the story we did, he was flown to the White House to meet President Obama.”
Meeting President Obama has now become somewhat of a normal experience for Andrew, who has now shot five interviews with the President. “It’s a surreal experience the first time,” Andrew says. “Each time after that it becomes more and more normal. Well, as normal as it can be when you’re setting up in the Blue Room of the White House.”
Andrew credits his advances as a journalist to his mentors at WVU. “[The journalism school] taught us to be well-rounded journalists,” Andrew says. “You need to be able to do everything and have all these different skills. They were ahead of the game in teaching all those different skills.”
As someone who thought he knew exactly what he wanted to do, Andrew advises young graduates to keep an open mind. “Never be afraid to take a job that may not be the perfect job for you at that time. If you can see it as a stepping stone to where you want to get, don’t be afraid to take that job,” Andrew says. “It’s all about who you know along the way.”
Other words of advice; “Don’t be afraid to try different things. You never know what’s going to be the right fit for you. Go with the flow until you find your niche, work hard, and don’t burn any bridges.”
