Dr. Castillo, who joined UVM on July 6, will provide day-to-day leadership to Prism@UVM and will serve as an essential voice within the Prism Intercultural Center and on the leadership team of the Division of Intercultural Excellence. His appointment followed a national search, campus interviews with four finalists, and significant community engagement.
"I am thrilled to join the Prism Intercultural Center team at UVM,” said Dr. Castillo. “The work of advancing student success through advocacy, programming, and partnership, and of supporting students across the full spectrum of identity, is exactly the kind of work that has defined my career. I look forward to collaborating with students, faculty, and staff to strengthen the inclusive community that makes UVM a place where all students can thrive."
Dr. Castillo’s approach to supporting LGBTQ+ students and community members is grounded in the belief that meaningful inclusion requires both individual relationships and systemic change. Drawing on his lived experience as a queer, first-generation Mexican-American scholar and more than a decade of work in campus centers that support LGBTQ+ students and people of all genders and sexual orientations, he understands that students thrive when their full identities are recognized and when institutions move beyond surface-level programming to address the structural barriers that shape students’ experiences.
Dr. Castillo most recently spent four years as Director of the LGBTQ Resource Center at Syracuse University, where he provided holistic advising and support to students, led crisis response during a period of significant campus unrest, and collaborated across divisions to implement systemic changes, including university-wide policies on chosen names and pronouns.
His work has consistently combined direct student support, including holistic advising, crisis response, and mentorship, with broader institutional efforts such as policy development, campus climate assessment, and cross-divisional collaboration. At its core, his philosophy centers on creating environments where students feel they belong, where their voices inform institutional decision-making, and where equal opportunity is embedded in everyday practice rather than treated as a separate initiative.
"Dr. Castillo brings the depth and breadth of leadership and vision that is needed for Prism@UVM at this time in its history," said Dr. Amer F. Ahmed, Vice Provost for Intercultural Excellence. "I look forward to the ways in which he will partner with our staff, students, and the broader UVM community to ensure that everything we do at Prism@UVM, whether a legacy program or new initiative, supports student success and wellbeing."
Prior to joining Syracuse University, Dr. Castillo helped open the first LGBTQ+ Center at West Virginia University, where he was also faculty in the Women’s and Gender Studies program and coordinated the LGBTQ Studies minor. He previously served as a Visiting Instructor in Gender and Sexuality Studies and the First-Year Program at St. Lawrence University.
Dr. Castillo holds a PhD in Spanish from the University of Connecticut and a BA in Spanish Language and Literature and Mexican American Studies from Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas. His scholarship and teaching span Spanish language, Latine and Latin American literature and film, queer theory, and gender and LGBTQ+ studies.
Outside of work, Dr. Castillo enjoys hiking with his partner and dog, exploring local restaurants, gardening, cooking, and live music. He is looking forward to settling into the Burlington area and getting to know the community.