Jill Banks

Director, Learning Operations, SCTE

Jill Banks is responsible for creating consistent learning experiences that leverage technology, next-generation educational science and data analytics to drive cable workforce technical expertise and ROI for the industry.

Prior to joining SCTE in 2017, Jill spent 25 years serving in various learning and development capacities with multiple Fortune 500 companies, including General Electric, American International Group (AIG), and Farmers Insurance. With SCTE , she has supported double-digit growth in course material and has been instrumental in the organization’s use of 3D simulations and other technologies to improve knowledge retention, reduce training time, and increase the impact on the organization. Her philosophy is that every encounter is a teachable moment at which persons can learn, develop, and grow regardless of age, profession, or titles.

In addition to her responsibilities with SCTE, Jill serves on the Board of Directors for Chestnut Hill College. She has served on the Advisory Boards for the Farmers Insurance Group’s Women’s Inclusion Network supporting mentoring and participated as a mentor for Big Brothers Big Sisters. In addition, she has volunteered for numerous community events, including Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure, Ronald McDonald House and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service.

Jill holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Millersville University, a Master’s in Business Administration from DeVry University and is pursuing a Doctorate in Education from Capella University.  

Angela Churchill

Senior Director, Marketing, Operations & Business, Comcast

In this unique role, Angela brings together and leads the strategic direction of the local marketing, analytics and operations teams to create one cohesive and balanced approach to how Comcast Business grows its footprint, in scope and brand, while mobilizing the sales teams to capture market share and revenue growth.

Angela believes every employee is in charge of creating the culture where they work and is active in shaping that culture here in the Keystone Region. She has been a co-lead of the Women’s Network (still a proud member), is the co-lead for the Customer Pillar for the DE&I Council, a mentor for the YPN Match Program and currently in Class 49 of the WICT Betsy Magness Leadership Institute. Outside of Comcast, she is currently a member of the RMU Sport Management and the Harrisburg University STEM-UP Network Advisory Boards.

Before joining Comcast in 2012, Angela held positions as the general manger of the event division for the international publication AMM (American Metal Market) , the marketing and event manager for Fortune 500 company WESCO and as the marketing manager of PLB Sports. Angela is a 2001 summa cum laude graduate of Robert Morris College where she double majored in Sports Management and Marketing.  

In her personal time, Angela is a strong supporter of pediatric cancer awareness and fundraising in honor of her niece Olivia, who at the age of 18 is a 10-year cancer survivor.  Most of her support goes towards the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth (CHaD) in Hanover, New Hampshire where Olivia and many other pediatric patients and families receive excellent treatment and support. Locally her support goes towards Connor’s Cure, a fund within Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Foundation to support pediatric cancer research. Angela’s 8-year-old son is named Connor in honor of all those fighting for a cure. 

Mike Sammon

VP Field Operations, Armstrong

Mike Sammon began his career in the broadband industry with Armstrong in 2002, shortly after his honorable service with the United States Army. Mike has served on Armstrong’s senior leadership team as Vice President of Field Operations since 2018. Mike and his team oversee Armstrong’s safety, technical, and customer experience initiatives, leading 13 system operations across 6 states. Mike’s career with Armstrong has covered a lot of ground. He started as an Installer Technician and held several key leadership positions through the years including Construction Manager, Operations Manager, General Manager and Director of Field Operations before being promoted to Vice President. Mike and his wife Christina reside in the Greater Pittsburgh area with their 3 daughters but remain lifelong Cleveland Browns fans!

Virgil King,

Regional Vice President, Field Operations, Comcast

Virgil King, Regional Vice President Field Operations for the Keystone Region, leads a team of 800 employees across Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Ohio, West Virginia, and the Maryland Panhandle, overseeing daily installation, fulfillment and network maintenance activities. Known as a dynamic servant leader, Virgil excels in motivating teams and fostering a culture of value and appreciation. With a background in highly demanding markets, he has a proven track record of transforming struggling teams into top performers through his emphasis on recognition and frontline leadership development, believing strongly in cultivating leadership at all levels.

Beyond his corporate role, Virgil brings a wealth of diverse experience, having served as a California Highway Patrol officer and as a dedicated member of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of the North Bay, where he chaired charity events like the "Golf 4 Kids' Sake" tournament. He continues to be actively involved in community and diversity initiatives, serving as Executive Champion for the NE Division APA ERG and advisory board member for Per Scholas Pittsburgh. Virgil holds a bachelor's degree in HR Management from the University of Arizona.

Virgil’s favorite quote:

"People don't care how much you know--until they know how much you care." --John C. Maxwell

Nicole Atherholt

I had the pleasure of attending the SCTE Chapter Leadership Conference, which provided me with an incredible opportunity to interact with numerous SCTE and industry leaders in person. This event was a fantastic platform that enabled me to establish valuable relationships with others, learn best practices, and bring them back to implement into our chapter. As a new board member, this was my first time attending the CLC event, and I am thrilled to share some of the highlights with you.

The conference kicked off with an Industry panel that included Jennifer Smardo, SVP, Network Implementation, TPX NGAN from Comcast, along with Guy McCormick, SCTE Chairman of the Board from Cox Communications, and Ken Johnson from Cable One. The panel discussion revolved around cultivating leadership in our industry and preparing our leaders to support current priorities and plans in the fast-paced change we are experiencing.

Our chapter received three well-deserved awards during the conference: the 2023 Membership Certificate for supporting the growth of SCTE membership and promoting SCTE’s mission, the 2023 Striving for Excellence Certificate for providing a meaningful, engaging experience for local members, and furthering SCTE’s mission in the local area, and the 2023 Compliance Certificate for outstanding efforts in maintaining the chapter’s operations within its bylaws and dedication to furthering SCTE’s mission.

One of the key takeaways from the conference was the idea of our “family” chapters. Leveraging this concept involves engaging not only the chapters in our geographic vicinity but also others to strengthen our efforts. This approach can help us cultivate content, share events, and drive participation as we work to spread the SCTE mission.

I was honored to present with Jeff Straitiff in the “Adding Technology and Automation” session one of the best practices from our Penn-Ohio chapter on day 2.  We demonstrated how we use various social media platforms, including short clips to break out bigger topics into smaller segments, to reach more members and increase engagement. It was a well-attended session, and we plan to partner with other chapters to expand this effort and have help in content creation.

Finally, my ask is that you consider who our “family” chapters are and how they can help as we dive into some of our initiatives in 2024 to lighten the load of our committee members while increasing our reach. 

Jeffrey Straitiff



It was my first time attending the CLC and was proud to represent our chapter in Scottsdale, AZ.   All the events were well organized, from roundtable and panel discussions to the training sessions. I attended as many training sessions as the schedule would allow, including the Officer Training for Secretaries. As the secretary for our chapter, it was nice to compare notes with secretaries from other chapters.

There was also a keynote speaker by the name of Ben Whiting. A fun and engaging speaker, magician, and mind reader. He had a lot of good techniques to help us all communicate more effectively.

The highlight, for me, was the opportunity to speak, alongside Nicole Atherholt, in the “Adding Technology and Automation” session on the final day of the conference. We were very excited to share our chapter’s decision to partner with John Bush/Maximum Overdrive to enhance our social media presence. There was a lot of talk in the previous day about our YouTube channel amongst the attendees, so we expected a full room in our session. We were not disappointed, as the room was full and the response to our presentation was great. There was a ton of engagement and I think we even forced them all to follow the channel by scanning QR code at the start of the presentation. All jokes aside, Mike O’Dell’s vision to reignite the chapter’s social media presence mainly through YouTube was very well received by all of those attending.