New Bedford Teacher Seen During American Idol [Video]

New Bedford High School English teacher Craig DeMelo is seen by his students in the classroom every day.

However, on Thursday night he'll be seen by thousands during the airing of "American Idol."

DeMelo beat out more than 30 other competitors in a contest put on by Cardi's Furniture and WPRI to perform in a segment that will air during a commercial break.

DeMelo told WBSM's Phil Paleologos that the entire entry process was very quick.

"It all happened pretty fast," said DeMelo "I think we entered it about a month ago and then they narrowed it down, they had the finals, it was a quick process."

DeMelo the segment is about a minute long, but it involved hours of shooting.

"We filmed it last week, a week ago and they got like a story line and then some live footage but I'll tell you what...55 seconds and I was there all day, " said DeMelo "it was a good time though, it was a learning experience for sure.

"American Idol" begins at 8 p.m. on FOX.

DeMelo's segment will be show during a commercial airing between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m.