Robert M. Campbell 1937
Founding Vermont Filmmaker
For Robert “Bob” M. Campbell ’37, attending Vermont Academy for his senior year was a turning point in his life. The school acted as a launching pad for him in the earliest years of his career, and once he was established, he turned around and began giving back almost immediately.
After graduating from Vermont Academy, Bob attended Dartmouth College and earned his MBA at the Tuck School of Business in 1942. Although he could not join the military due to medical issues, he was proud to play his part in WWII by working for Remington Firearms until the war ended. He and his wife, Beth, then moved to Manhattan and he joined Willard Pictures, an industrial film company, as they started a family.
In 1948, Bob returned to Saxtons River to become Vermont Academy’s director of development. He never lost his passion for film, and as his family grew—eventually he and Beth had 11 children—Bob began freelancing as a filmmaker again. By 1956, he had turned it into his full-time work, founding Campbell Films, the first commercial film company in Vermont.
Specializing in productions that supported the fundraising campaigns of universities and nonprofit organizations, the organization helped schools like MIT, Middlebury, and the Perkins School for the Blind raise capital and build awareness of their missions. With the Perkins School for the Blind, Bob’s efforts were critical to raising awareness of the rubella epidemic and of the growing population who were made deafblind by the disease.
In addition to doing good with his professional work, Bob felt compelled to give back as well. In 1973, hoping to revitalize his adopted hometown of Saxtons River, he purchased the Saxtons River Inn and set to work renovating and restoring it, bringing a center of community life back to the town he loved. Each of his children were involved in the restoration and running of the Inn, helping to ensure the vitality of Saxtons River for future generations.
As for his relationship to Vermont Academy, it continued well past his tenure as director of development. From 1957 to 1970, Bob was on the board of trustees, and his children attended the school. Bob and his wife also endowed a vital part of the Vermont Academy experience when they created the Bob ’37 and Beth Campbell Arts and Lecture Series. The program brings contemporary artists to Vermont Academy to speak with individual classes and to the whole school about their work and artistic process. It is a fitting legacy for a man who cared deeply about filmmaking and how art can change the world.
Though Bob died in 2018 just a few weeks short of his 100th birthday, his impact on the school and on the wider Saxtons River community is indelible. We are proud to honor his devoted service to the school, community, and his profession with the posthumous presentation of The Florence R. Sabin Class of 1889 Distinguished Alumni Award.
– Awarded in 2023
After graduating from Vermont Academy, Bob attended Dartmouth College and earned his MBA at the Tuck School of Business in 1942. Although he could not join the military due to medical issues, he was proud to play his part in WWII by working for Remington Firearms until the war ended. He and his wife, Beth, then moved to Manhattan and he joined Willard Pictures, an industrial film company, as they started a family.
In 1948, Bob returned to Saxtons River to become Vermont Academy’s director of development. He never lost his passion for film, and as his family grew—eventually he and Beth had 11 children—Bob began freelancing as a filmmaker again. By 1956, he had turned it into his full-time work, founding Campbell Films, the first commercial film company in Vermont.
Specializing in productions that supported the fundraising campaigns of universities and nonprofit organizations, the organization helped schools like MIT, Middlebury, and the Perkins School for the Blind raise capital and build awareness of their missions. With the Perkins School for the Blind, Bob’s efforts were critical to raising awareness of the rubella epidemic and of the growing population who were made deafblind by the disease.
In addition to doing good with his professional work, Bob felt compelled to give back as well. In 1973, hoping to revitalize his adopted hometown of Saxtons River, he purchased the Saxtons River Inn and set to work renovating and restoring it, bringing a center of community life back to the town he loved. Each of his children were involved in the restoration and running of the Inn, helping to ensure the vitality of Saxtons River for future generations.
As for his relationship to Vermont Academy, it continued well past his tenure as director of development. From 1957 to 1970, Bob was on the board of trustees, and his children attended the school. Bob and his wife also endowed a vital part of the Vermont Academy experience when they created the Bob ’37 and Beth Campbell Arts and Lecture Series. The program brings contemporary artists to Vermont Academy to speak with individual classes and to the whole school about their work and artistic process. It is a fitting legacy for a man who cared deeply about filmmaking and how art can change the world.
Though Bob died in 2018 just a few weeks short of his 100th birthday, his impact on the school and on the wider Saxtons River community is indelible. We are proud to honor his devoted service to the school, community, and his profession with the posthumous presentation of The Florence R. Sabin Class of 1889 Distinguished Alumni Award.
– Awarded in 2023
Vermont Academy is a coed college preparatory boarding and day school in southern Vermont, serving grades 9-12 plus a postgraduate year.
