I was hired at Shasta College in 1978 and thought I’d be here for five years. Now, here I am, 46 years later! Over the years, my goal has been to grow the music program, and it’s just been a wonderful journey. I’ve been able to teach and develop new courses like The History of Jazz and Rock. I also love conducting, so I’ve built ensembles, like the Community Band and various jazz bands.
The campus looks pretty much the same as when I started in 1978. I love interacting with and teaching the students. Their attitude now is very similar to how it was 46 years ago, but the technology has changed dramatically. When I started teaching, we had no computers or anything like that. Now, everybody’s using phones, and our phones today are more powerful than the computers were back then!
My advice for students has always been the same: get your degree. I tell them it’s like a membership card. It doesn’t guarantee anything, but it can open certain doors for you, and it’s also something that can’t ever be taken away from you.
I’ve been here so long that I’ve had grandparents, parents, and their children in my classes. I feel blessed to have had that experience. Over my career, I’ve had the privilege of conducting concerts for close to 80,000 people.
One last thing is that I met my wife in the Caribbean about 24 years ago while I was on an international sabbatical for a semester. They had to kick her out of her classroom so I could give my lecture, and she had to hold her class in the hallway! That’s how we met, and we’ve been married for 21 years—on top of everything else, the college even helped me meet my wife!
I joke that I bleed green when I get cut—Shasta College green!
Go Shasta College! Go Knights!